


The Wrath of Heaven

by Antarctic_Echoes



Series: Carry On, Wayward Son [6]
Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Grand Romance, Non-Graphic Violence, Some Lucifer Whump, Strong Language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-08
Updated: 2016-08-30
Packaged: 2018-08-07 11:21:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 37,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7712935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Antarctic_Echoes/pseuds/Antarctic_Echoes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lucifer and Chloe both get pulled into the war in Heaven, with dire consequences.</p><p>Sequel to "Courting Chloe" -- takes place a few days later.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Ominous Dream

**Author's Note:**

  * For [RCS (RadioactiveCs)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RadioactiveCs/gifts), [Marley_Potter](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marley_Potter/gifts).



> This installment is dedicated to RCS(RadioactiveCs), who so kindly volunteered to translate the entire(!!) Carry On, Wayward Son series into Polish, and to her sister Marley_Potter, who inspired her to start translating stories! Thank you, thank you, thank you both! I still can't believe you would offer to translate my work, and I am so very honored! 
> 
> And a super-big THANK YOU to all of you wonderful readers who have been keeping up with this Lucifer and Chloe, through all of their ups and downs. I really appreciate each and every one of you, especially those who take the time to comment (some every day!). You keep me inspired to keep writing about these two!! Thank you!! You are ALL very awesome and I am YOUR biggest fan! Thank you, thank you!!! 
> 
> And last but certainly not least, a super, super big THANK YOU to my wonderful beta, ScooterThyme, whose excellent work makes my chapters shine! Thank you so very much, you're the best!!
> 
> Disclaimer: Lucifer Morningstar, Chloe Decker, Trixie Decker, Mazikeen, Amenadiel, and Dan Espinoza are owned by Vertigo Comics, DC Comics, Neil Gaiman, Mike Carey, and everyone else involved with the Lucifer TV show and comic books. I own nothing and make no money on this. I merely am borrowing the characters for... uh... writing practice. (Everyone else is my creation.)

 

 

Clad in his black silk robe, Lucifer looked up at the morning sky from his balcony.  Usually the weather was sunny and a little windy in Los Angeles when October came around, but in the last few days storm clouds had rolled over the city.  No rain had fallen, despite how desperately the city needed it.  Only flashes of lightning and the large claps of thunder punctuated the sky, occasionally sparking fires in the foothills and causing massive amounts of damage.

The Devil frowned as he studied the ugly gray clouds.  He didn’t know what was going on in Heaven, but it couldn’t be good if it was affecting the weather.  With a shake of his head, he headed back into his flat.

It was too early to start breakfast, so he wandered over to the guest bedroom and peeked in.  Chloe and Trixie were still asleep on the bed, which made him smile.  His family, he thought proudly.  Worried that angels might kidnap them, he had moved them temporarily into the flat where he could keep a better eye on them.  Maze and Amenadiel had taken up residence in the flat one floor below, as extra protection.  

As if aware of his scrutiny, Chloe slowly stirred, then opened her eyes.  “Hi,” she said as she saw him leaning against the door frame.

Lucifer responded with a smile.  “Hello, love.”

Easing away from her daughter, the detective pulled herself out of bed and walked into the fallen angel’s arms.  “You’re up early,” she said after they shared a passionate kiss.

“I miss you in my bed,” he said simply.

Chloe chuckled.  “Yeah, well....” she said as she slid a glance at a sleeping Trixie.

“Right, but think of how much better protected you would be, safe in my arms at night,” he teased.  “No angel would dare touch you while we were having hot, steamy, erotic --”

“And tell me, where would Trixie be while this was happening?” the blonde woman interrupted.

“Asleep in her bed, of course!”  Lucifer grinned.  “Although I must say, you’re quite the noisy lover.  You’d probably wake her up --”

“I’m the noisy one?” laughed Chloe.  “And who’s the one who keeps yelling ‘I love you’ loud enough for the people in LUX to hear?”  She was pleased to see a flush spread across Lucifer’s face before he started looking everywhere except at her.

“I... I think I better make us some breakfast,” he said as he made his escape.

“I’ll get dressed, then get Trixie up for school,” she called after him with a grin.

Lucifer made his way to the kitchen and started preparing an omelette.  When alone, his face reflected the worries he had about his family.  It had only been a few days since Rafe had given them the warning that angels would be hunting down Chloe.  No one had come yet, but that wasn’t to say that they wouldn’t.

Anxiety gnawed at him; the waiting was the worst.  At least the detective had her hell-forged knife and bullets -- he rested easier in the knowledge that she had some means of protecting herself if he wasn’t with her.

“Lucifer!” Trixie cried as she ran up to him, wrapping herself around his waist.  The tall man laughed as he lifted the pan to keep her from getting burned.  

“Hello, child,” he greeted as the pajama-clad girl peeked into the pan.

“Whatcha making?” she asked.

“An omelette with chives and chervils, to be accompanied by roasted mushrooms and watercress,” Lucifer said proudly.  Trixie screwed up her face as she looked at him.

“I don’t understand half of what you’re saying,” she said, “but I guess it smells okay....”

“Just okay?!  I’ll have you know it smells delicious, child!”  With a sigh and a roll of his eyes, Lucifer muttered to himself, “Bloody gourmet food is lost on the young....”

Trixie peered up at him.  “Do you have any chocolate cake to go with it?”

The fallen angel was appalled.  “Chocolate cake?!  To go with this culinary masterpiece?”

“Uh huh!” the girl said as she grinned charmingly up at him.  Lucifer sighed.  When Trixie looked at him like that, he couldn’t deny her anything.

“Bloody hell,” he groaned.  “The refrigerator.  Slice yourself a piece and eat it quickly, before your mother finds out.”

“Thanks, Lucifer!”  She detached herself from his waist and ran to the refrigerator.

Chloe was going to kill him. 

Sure enough, the blonde detective came across them just as Trixie was taking her first bite of the chocolate dessert. “Trixie!  Cake for breakfast?!” she scolded.

With a mouthful of cake, Trixie said, “Lucifer said it was okay.”

“Just toss me under the bloody bus,” Lucifer muttered sotto voce.  Pasting a smile on his face, he turned to his lover.  “My dear Detective, you look lovely today!”

Chloe looked furious.  “Don’t try to change the subject.  Cake is not a breakfast food!” she snapped.

“What about coffee cake?  We eat that for brekkie occasionally,” the fallen angel said innocently.  “Besides, it’s what the child desired, and who am I to refuse one’s desires?”

Chloe glared at him, and Lucifer had to admit, it made her all the more beautiful in his eyes.  He loved her fire.  A part of him wondered if he was unconsciously doing things to annoy her, just to see her burn with intensity.  It aroused him terribly -- in fact, if the child wasn’t sitting there eating cake, he would have swept Chloe off her feet and taken her right on the kitchen table.  A red-hot flush shot through his body.  He needed a cold shower -- now.

Chloe opened her mouth to argue with him when he pulled her close and kissed her with such passion that she forgot every thought in her head.  After a few long minutes he broke away, smiling devilishly at her, and said, “I’ll get dressed.  Help yourself to an omelette,” before dashing off to his bedroom.

“This argument isn’t over!” she called after him, before glancing at her daughter.  Trixie sat there with a huge grin on her face and an empty plate in front of her.  Chloe rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t hold onto her anger.  Chuckling, she grabbed a plate and put half of the egg dish on it.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Maze and Amenadiel came up to the flat half an hour later.  Lucifer and his family met them at the lift, with Trixie packed up and ready for school.  It was a daily ritual they had begun since the news of the war had broken out.  Lucifer had figured it was best that Maze protect Trixie while he protect Chloe, when mother and daughter were separated.

Lucifer remembered when they had invited the couple to the flat to tell them of Chloe’s past and enlist their help.

 

 

________________________________________

  
  


 

“She’s a what?!” Amenadiel had said, shocked and horrified.  “She can’t be here.”  Then turning to Chloe he said, “You can’t be here.  Old Gods are evil and must be driven away!”

Chloe gaped at him.  “I’m what?!  Good god, Amenadiel -- you know me.  I’m not evil!”

“Please, Detective, don’t bring Dad into this,” Lucifer said with a roll of his eyes.

“But -- but --”

As Amenadiel scrambled for words, Maze shoved him aside and got right in Chloe’s face.  “So let me get this straight -- you’re a goddess?”

“Well, that’s what I’ve been told....” 

“So... what do you do?  Kill people at a glance?  Electrocute them with your lightning bolts?  Incinerate them with flame?”  The demon grew more and more excited.

“She’s the Goddess of Compassion, Maze.  She doesn’t do any of that,” Lucifer said.

_ “Compassion?!” _ the demon spat.  Giving Chloe a dirty look, she snarled, “What’s the use of that?!  Compassion is for weaklings!”

Maze stomped away, and Amenadiel took her place.  “I still can’t believe this,” he said.  “You’re an Old God of Compassion?  Really?”

Chloe nodded.  “So I’ve been told.  I don’t remember....”

“She’s been waiting for me for three thousand years,” Lucifer supplied helpfully, reaching over and taking her hand.  He grinned proudly.  “She fell in love with me before she even knew me, and has been reborn a hundred times... all for me.”

“Ugh.  I think I’m going to be sick,” the demon muttered.  “What the hell kind of god are you?!  Stupid, pathetic, sappy, disgusting....”

“Maze,” Lucifer barked warningly.

Amenadiel ran his hand over his face.  “This is crazy.  Just crazy.  Impossible!  It goes against everything Father has been telling us.  There’s no way an Old God would have enough compassion to fall in love with Luci of all people --”

“I beg your pardon!” Lucifer interrupted, insulted.  

“-- and go through all that sacrifice and still be considered evil.  It doesn’t make sense.  Love and evil don’t go together.”

“Well, they can,” Maze added in a sexy drawl as she grabbed her lover’s arm.  “I can show you how....”

“Uhhhh, I have to go now, Luci.  We’ll help you, you know we will....” Amenadiel said as his demon lover dragged him to the elevator.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

That had been a few days ago.  True to their word, Maze and Amenadiel had been more than helpful in protecting Chloe and Trixie, which brought warmth to Lucifer’s heart -- which was a little disturbing, the Devil had to admit.

“We really appreciate this,” Chloe said to the couple.  “I know she’s safe at school with you looking after her, Mazikeen.”

The demon shrugged.  “No problem, I don’t mind looking after Trixie.  It’s kind of fun to watch over her and see if those stupid teachers even notice me in the bushes.  Those other kids, though.... I’d love to slice their throats open from ear to ear --”

“And we’ll bring her back at the end of the school day,” Amenadiel interrupted with a meaningful glance at his girlfriend.

“Thanks, bro,” Lucifer said.  “Take care.  You may very well have a bloody target on your back for helping us.”

“We’ll be careful.”  The angel turned to the little girl.  “Are you ready to go?”

At Trixie’s nod, Chloe gave her little girl a big hug.  “Stay safe, okay?  And remember: if for any reason we’re not here when you get back, listen to Mazikeen and Amenadiel, okay?”

“Okay, Mommy.”  Trixie ran to Lucifer and gave him a hug.  “Bye Lucifer!”

“Goodbye, child.  We’ll see you when you get home.”

After the elevator closed on the threesome, Lucifer turned to Chloe.  “Now, my dear, what would you like to do today?”

Chloe slanted a glance at him.  “Well, it seems someone has gotten me unlimited time off at work -- Lieutenant Monroe texted me last night.  Hmmmm, I wonder who could have done that?”

“Who indeed?” the fallen angel asked as he pulled her close and began to kiss her neck.

“And now it seems I have the whole morning free --”

“Mm,” agreed Lucifer. “Splendid....”

“So I thought....”

“Mm?”  His lips moved from her neck to her ear.

“I thought that maybe....”

“Yes?”

“We could....”

He started to grin as he continued his sexual onslaught.  “Yes?”

“Go shopping.”

It was like a cold bucket of water had been poured on Lucifer’s head.  He pulled back, incredulous.  “What?!”

“You know, go shopping.  Trixie needs some new clothes,” Chloe said.

The fallen angel gaped at her.  “Bloody hell -- you can’t be serious.”

The blonde woman’s eyes twinkled.  “Oh, very serious.”

“But -- but --”

Unable to hold a straight face, Chloe burst out into laughter.  Lucifer looked at her like she was crazy, before finally starting to grin himself.

“You minx,” he accused as he caressed her cheek.  “You’ll pay for that.”

“You promise?” she asked him playfully.

Lucifer chuckled.  “I give you my word.”

Giving him a coy glance, she took his hand and led him to his bedroom.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

_ He was facing a giant, rocky cliff. _

_ It was of the utmost importance that he get to the top -- he knew that, although he didn’t know why.  With a sigh, he started to climb.  The sharp edges of the rocks were hard on his hands as he pulled himself up, cutting into his fingers and making them bleed.  Hand over hand, he kept on. _

_ At times he lost his grip and went sliding down the steep face, only to somehow miraculously catch himself with a foothold here, or a handgrip there.  Through sheer determination, he made it to the top. _

_ Heaven opened up before him, only it wasn’t the home he recognized. _

_ Dead angels littered the entire landscape.  Blood drenched the ground as he moved forward, turning the soil under him into reddish mud that sucked at his feet.  He could smell smoke in the air -- the smell of burning feathers and flesh.  A funeral pyre was burning somewhere.  Nausea overwhelmed him.  Everything around him was death, as far as the eye could see. _

 

Lucifer woke up with a start.  What the hell had that been?  The dream had been so real, so vivid....  He could still see the dead angels, and smell the burning flesh.  Rubbing his hand over his face, he tried to wipe out the memory.

Glancing at Chloe, he saw that she was still sleeping soundly in his arms after their bout of lovemaking.  She looked so peaceful with her face relaxed in repose....  If only he had been able to stay asleep as well.  

Pulling himself out of bed, Lucifer shrugged on his robe and made his way to the bar.  He poured himself a big glass of Scotch and downed it, then fixed himself another drink.  Before he had finished that one, he heard a rustle of clothing behind him.  Turning, he saw Chloe walking up to him, clad in his silk shirt.

“Are you okay?” she asked as she took a place beside the fallen angel.  Eyeing the alcohol in his hand, she said, “You usually don’t drink after we make love.  If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were unhappy...?”

“Are you fishing for compliments, love?” he asked with a grin, ignoring the bothersome anxiety niggling at him.  “Because you know you are the most fantastic lover I’ve ever had --”

“Then why are you drinking?” she interrupted, her brows furrowed with concern.

Lucifer drank the remaining alcohol in his glass before setting it down and turning to the detective.  “I... I had a dream.”

“What kind of dream?”

“A bad one.”  He reached for Chloe, pulling her close.  “Must we talk about it?”

“Not if you don’t want to,” she said gently before kissing him on the forehead.  “I just worry about you, that’s all.”

“I’m all right,” the fallen angel said softly before kissing her deeply.

“Well, isn’t this cozy?” A cold voice from the balcony asked.

Startled, both Lucifer and Chloe broke apart to see two angels standing on their balcony, with knives in their hands.  One had red hair and brown wings, while the other had dark brown hair with mottled black and white wings.

“Hello, Brother,” the angel with flaming red hair said with a smile. “We’ve come for the Old God.”


	2. Taken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-big thank you, thank you!! to my most excellent beta, ScooterThyme, who picks up all my mistakes and makes my work shine! You are awesome!!

 

 

“Jehoel,” Lucifer snarled as he pushed Chloe behind him.  

Giving a little bow, the redheaded angel said, “At your service.  You know Nuriel, of course.”

The other angel tipped his head slightly.  “Hello, Brother.”

“So whose side are you on?” he asked.  “Dear old Dad’s?  Or the rebels?”

“What makes you think we’d be with Father?” Nuriel spat.  “That old geezer, lying to us about Michael.  We can’t trust him anymore.”

“No, Brother, we’re not with Father,” Jehoel said.  “That’s why we need you on our side.”

Lucifer laughed harshly.  “Right.  And what makes you sods think I’d do anything for you?  It wasn’t so long ago that you all held me in the highest bloody contempt.”

“That’s why we need the Old God.  Father says we can control you through her,” the redheaded angel said as he pointed to Chloe.  

The two angels started fanning out, making it hard for their fallen brother to keep his eyes on both of them.  Jehoel seemed to be the leader, so he watched him more closely, but Nuriel was making him edgy.  He had to subdue them so that he could get Chloe to safety.

“That’s a load of rubbish and you know it,” Lucifer snapped.  “Father doesn’t know what the bloody hell he’s talking about.”  Without taking his eyes off the intruders, he whispered to Chloe, “Go get dressed.”

She started to protest, then realized that she had her gun and knife in the other room -- she could help Lucifer if she could get her hands on them.  With a quick nod, she dashed to the bedroom.

Both angels watched her go, as Lucifer took a few steps forward, a feral grin on his face.

Nuriel suddenly rushed him, knife raised to strike.  Lucifer grabbed the angel’s knife arm, trying to keep from getting impaled, and wrenched hard, pulling Nuriel into Jehoel’s path as the other man tried to stab him.  Tackling both brothers, the Devil fought for one of the knives.  Jehoel managed to get out from under the dogpile and kicked Lucifer viciously in the ribs, throwing him across the room.  There was the sickening sound of bones cracking at the blow, and Lucifer winced as pain shot through his side.  Bloody hell, he had forgotten about the detective -- he was mortal when Chloe was around.  With a roar, Nuriel launched himself on his fallen brother and stabbed him between the ribs.  Swearing, Lucifer threw the other man off of him and gripped the hilt still stuck in his side.  Nuriel raced up, kicking him in the stomach; while he was bent over, Jehoel brought his fist down hard on the the back of the fallen angel’s head.

Lucifer felt blinding pain; then there was nothing.

 

 

________________________________________

  
  


“Well, that was a lot easier than I was expecting,” Jehoel said with surprise as he looked at the prone man.  

“I can’t believe he’s the strongest angel next to Michael,” Nuriel added.  

“Old God!” Jehoel yelled as he yanked up Lucifer and put his knife to the unconscious man’s neck.  “Get out here, or else your lover dies!”

Their scuffle with Lucifer had lasted mere seconds.  Chloe had scrambled to get her gun and rushed out, but saw her lover go down before she could do anything.  Seeing the knife at Lucifer’s neck, she hid the gun at her side and quickly backed up into the bedroom.

It was inevitable that she was going to get taken.  Thinking quickly, she yelled, “Okay!  Just don’t hurt Lucifer!”

With a speed that surprised her, she threw on her clothes, shoved the gun into her boot, along with her little shiv, and walked out with her hands raised.  She couldn’t afford to lose the gun.  If they were going to take her, she had to make sure she could defend herself.  It was her hope that as long as they didn’t know it was filled with Hell-forged bullets, they would let her keep it.

Nuriel grabbed her by her hair and dragged her over to Jehoel, who sheathed his knife and let Lucifer’s body slump onto the floor.  Although the pain in her scalp was intense, Chloe refused to cry out.  Nuriel threw her at the feet of his companion, next to Lucifer.  Her insides screamed with fear as her eyes gazed at the unconscious man.  He was so still -- had they killed him?

Before she could even move, the redheaded angel grabbed her chin and wrenched her head up, his eyes tracing over her face.  “So you’re the Old God,” he said.  “You certainly have Lucifer under your spell.”

“I don’t have anyone under any spell -- I’m human,” she snapped.  

“That’s not what Father says,” Jehoel said.  He grabbed her by her shirt and hauled her to her feet.  “Well, it doesn’t matter what you are.  You’re coming with us.”

“Like hell I am,” she spat as she punched the angel.  His head didn’t even snap back; he just laughed. 

“A spitfire!  I like you!” he said with a feral grin.  With the speed of a cobra, his hand lashed out, punching her in the jaw.  Chloe crumpled to the floor, knocked unconscious from the force of the blow.  At Jehoel’s nod, Nuriel picked up the woman and threw her over his shoulder.  The two angels walked out to the balcony with their precious cargo, then took off in flight.

 

 

________________________________________

  
  


“Lucifer?  Lucifer?”

Pain was the first thing that the fallen angel was aware of.  A bloody blinding headache, and a terrible agony in his side that made him want to scream whenever he took a breath.  He opened his eyes to see Trixie leaning over him, concern shining in her eyes.  She looked so much like her mother at that moment that Lucifer’s heart gave a painful squeeze.  And then Maze was there, her hands hovering over the hilt of the knife that Nuriel had left in him.  Groaning, he touched the back of his head to find a lump the size of an egg on it.  

“B-bloody hell,” he muttered as he pulled his hand away to see it covered with sticky blood.  And then the memories came back and he snapped to attention, his eyes darting left and right.  “Chloe -- where’s Chloe?!”

He tried to get to his feet, but Maze held him down.  “Don’t move, Lucifer,” she said.  “You’re badly injured.  Amenadiel’s trying to get in touch with Raphael.”

“No, no, no --” Lucifer cried as he fought against his demon.  “They have her!  I have to find her --”

“Lucifer, if you don’t lay still, I’m going to beat you unconscious,” Maze growled.

Trixie sat down next to the prone man.  “Please, Lucifer, stay still.”

Lucifer’s crazed eyes slowly grew calm as he looked at the little girl.  “W-what are you doing here?  Bloody hell, how long have I been out?”

“Minimum day,” Trixie said simply.  Her face was filled with fear.  “Bad angels took Mommy, didn’t they?”

Squeezing his eyes shut, Lucifer tried to beat back the panic and guilt that was pounding in every fiber of his being.  “Yes, child,” he whispered.  “I’m sorry.”

The little girl lay down beside him on his good side and gave him a hug.  “You’ll save her, I know you will,” she said.  The fallen angel suddenly wanted to start bawling at the little girl’s simple faith in him -- and what kind of Devil would that make him?  Despite the pain his movements made, He reached over and hugged her hard.  

“I’ll save her, child -- I’ll do whatever it takes.  I give you my word.”

Maze rolled her eyes at the sentimental scene before her, but said nothing.  She turned at the sound of the flurry of wings at the balcony.  “They’re here,” she told her boss.

Lucifer looked up as Amenadiel and Raphael walked in, with Raphael immediately trading places with Trixie and crouching next to his fallen brother.  Inspecting the knife wound, the angel hissed as he looked at the mess.  “What the hell happened, Luci?” he asked.

A laugh escaped Lucifer, but it was not a pleasant sound.  “Jehoel and Nuriel.  Those bloody bastards -- the rebels -- have taken the detective.”

“Crap,” Raphael muttered.  “Hang on a minute, this may hurt,” he said as he pulled the knife out.  Working quickly, he pressed his hand against Lucifer’s lacerated side.  The injured man inhaled sharply as blue light from his brother’s hand flooded his body, healing the broken ribs and the cracked skull, as well as the flesh wound.

“I still have a bloody headache,” Lucifer complained as he pulled himself to a sitting position.  Raphael rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, well tough.  You get what you get.  Consider yourself lucky that they left the knife in to act as a cork.  Now I have to get back.”  

“Wait,” the dark-haired man said as he gripped his brother’s arm.  “Do you know where I can find the detective?  And what’s going on with the war?”

Raphael shook his head.  “It’s bad up there.  Pretty evenly matched, if you ask me, so there are a lot of casualties on both sides.  I’ve been up there with a bevy of healers trying to help everyone.  We’re neutral, you know, so we’re going from side to side, trying to keep everyone in one piece.  

“I don’t know where you can find Chloe, but I’ll snoop around up there and see what I can uncover.  Find her soon, Brother.  I like her, and I don’t want to see her hurt.”

Lucifer’s thoughts were still a little scattered from the blow to his head, but he managed to latch onto Raphael’s last sentence with a fury.  “What do you mean, you  _ like _ her?  You bloody well better  _ unlike _ her, you sod!”

“Oh for the love of --”  Raphael stood up.  “Yes, I like her, you ass.   _ As a friend. _  Now for Father’s sake will you please just shut up before I kick you?”

The fallen angel glared at his brother, not sure whether to believe him or not, while Amenadiel, Maze and Trixie sat there snickering at the exchange.  

“Luci has it bad,” Amenadiel muttered.

“It’s the saddest thing I’ve ever seen,” Maze whispered back with disgust.  “He’s softer than one of those nasty teddy bear things that Trixie has.”

“But Lucifer is cute when he’s cuddly,” Trixie defended.  Everyone chuckled at the little girl’s statement except for Lucifer, who gave them all a baleful stare.

“The Devil is neither cute nor cuddly,” he said with dignity as he got to his feet and walked to his bedroom.  “Right.  Excuse me while I get dressed.  I have a detective to find.”  

“My guess is that the rebels will come soon to make demands on Lucifer,” Raphael said to Amenadiel.  “Help him remain calm.  Killing the messenger isn’t going to do Chloe any good.”

With that, Raphael took off for home.

 

 

________________________________________

  
  


 

Lucifer stood under the spray in his shower, kicking himself for being ten times a fool.  Guilt shot through him at the thought of the detective defenseless and in the hands of those vicious angels.  Bloody hell, if only he hadn’t been caught without a weapon....  If only he hadn’t been mortal....  If only...!

Sighing, he scrubbed the blood on his body away.  With detached eyes he watched the pinkish water go down the drain.  Stupid, bloody mortality!  He didn’t even know why he was mortal around Chloe, only that it really put a dent in his fighting skills against his siblings.  

Well, one thing was for certain -- he had to find the detective.  She was his heart, and he couldn’t live without her.  If they harmed even a hair on her head, he’d make them regret it.

As he stepped out of the shower and got dressed, he tried to think of the best places to look for Chloe.  He had no idea where they would take her.  Somewhere on Earth, that was for sure.  But where?  She could be anywhere....

Walking back out into the main area of his flat, he headed for the bar.  Noticing that Amenadiel was looking at him intensely, he paused in midstep.  Maze was leading Trixie toward the elevator, a warning look on her face.  WIth a glance, he saw an angel on the balcony with black hair and gray wings.  

“Brother,” Amenadiel said, “Puriel is here to discuss terms with you regarding Chloe.”


	3. Terms and Conditions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-huge thank you to my most excellent beta, ScooterThyme! You make my work shine!!

 

 

For the span of a heartbeat, Lucifer studied the angel on his balcony; then he was sprinting at him faster than the eye could follow.  Swearing, Amenadiel gave chase.  The Devil had just wrapped his hands around Puriel’s neck when his brother took them both down from behind.

“Lucifer, no!  No!” Amenadiel yelled as the fallen angel screamed his rage like an animal.

“Where is she, you bastard?!   _ Where is she?! _ ” Lucifer roared as his fingers tightened.

Gurgling from the pressure on his neck, the hapless angel couldn’t even get a word out as he tried to fight off his attacker.  His fists batted at Lucifer’s head, but the Devil couldn’t even feel the blows in his anger.  Amenadiel finally managed to pry his brother off of the newcomer, and subdued him in a headlock.

“Stop it, Brother!”

Lucifer’s eyes glowed a furious red as he gnashed his teeth and struggled to get free.  “Let me go, Amenadiel!” he snarled.  “I’ll tear him limb from bloody limb until he tells me where she is!”

Puriel took a step back, fearing for his life.  “L-look,” he stammered.  “I’m just here to tell you our terms.  Dokiel and I are leading the rebellion against Father.  We need your help to beat him.”

The angel’s words just made Lucifer even more determined to rip him apart.  He broke free of Amenadiel’s grip and reached for Puriel again right before his brother forced him to the floor and pinned him.  

“Lucifer, calm down!  Do you really think killing Puriel is going to help Chloe?!”

Chloe’s name helped clear the red haze that fogged the fallen angel’s mind.  Feeling the tension leave the Devil’s body, Amenadiel finally eased off the pressure from his back and helped him up.  Shrugging off his brother’s hand, Lucifer straightened his clothes as he tried to regain his composure.  He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, pushing back his anger, until he could look at Puriel in the eye without wanting to tear his head off.

“Right.  Tell me where she is.  Now.”

Puriel swallowed.  “Look, I don’t know where she is --”  He jumped back as the fallen angel lunged at him again.  Luckily, Amenadiel was there to intercede, grabbing Lucifer around his arms and holding him at bay.  

“Stop, Luci, stop!” he yelled.

“The bloody bastard’s people took the detective and now he says he doesn’t know where she is?!” 

“I really don’t!” the black-haired angel cried.  “Jehoel said it’s safer this way.  He and Nuriel will hold her at some undisclosed location until you help us.  After the war is won, we’ll release her.  She will be our insurance that you won’t betray us.”

“Do you really think I’d help you after you kidnapped her?!  You bloody idiots!  What makes you think I’ll work for you?” Lucifer snapped.

“Jehoel will kill her if you don’t,” Puriel said.  

His fallen brother froze at the words.  “Bloody hell,” he whispered.  “You dare to blackmail me?!”

“Look, this was his idea, not ours,” the angel said, “but we’re willing to do anything to win against Father.  We can’t trust him to lead us anymore.  We actually want....”

“What is it you want?” Amenadiel asked.

“Yes, tell me, what is it you desire in that black heart of yours?” Lucifer snarled.

“We want you to be our new leader.  To replace Father.  We saw how you acted with honor against Michael, and we all heard the Old God say that Father’s right hand was a liar.  We believe you’re worthy of being our leader.”

Lucifer stood there with his mouth open in shock, before he started laughing hysterically.  “Did you hear that, bro?” he finally managed to say.  “They want me to be their new bloody leader!”

Suddenly biting off his derisive laughter, the fallen angel turned furious eyes to Puriel.  “You don’t even know what I bloody stand for.  I believe in free will --  _ free will. _  It’s what I fought so hard for, ages ago when Dad kicked me out of Heaven the first time.  You don’t need me as your leader -- you need to rely on yourselves!  You need to exercise that bloody free will!  I am bloody well not going to tell you how to live your lives -- make your own bloody mistakes and leave me out of it!”

Puriel stared at him for a moment, then shook his head.  “We know you say that now, but it will be different when Father is gone.  Please reconsider.  In the meantime, remember that we have your Old God.  Her life is in your hands.”

Lucifer stood there, fury pulsing through him.  He hated this feeling of helplessness, but he couldn’t afford to have anything happen to Chloe.  Bloody hell, he’d die before he’d let them hurt her.  Taking a deep breath, he said, “Chloe must remain safe.  Unharmed and alive.”

The black-haired angel nodded.  “Very well.”

“Right.  As long as she’s safe, I’ll fight for you, but I will not be your bloody leader after Dad is deposed.  Do you understand?”

“Agreed.  Do we have your word on this?”

Squeezing his eyes shut, Lucifer nodded.  “You have my word.”

“We’re camped at the Northern Edge, by the lakes.  We’ll await you there.”

After Puriel left, Amenadiel looked at his brother.  “Are you sure about this, Luci?”

Lucifer stared up at the sky.  “What choice do I have, Amenadiel?  What bloody choice do I have?”

 

 

________________________________________

  
  


 

Maze brought Trixie back upstairs just as Lucifer pulled a duffle bag out of the coat closet.  It was filled with Hell-forged weapons that Amenadiel had brought up from the last time he had visited the underworld.   Catching sight of the little girl, the fallen angel set the bag down on the bar counter and waited for her to come to him.  He wanted to explain to her what he was going to do, and to say goodbye.  It tore his heart out that this was the only way to bring her mother home.

“Lucifer!” she cried as she sprinted out of the elevator and barreled into him at full speed.  Wrapping her little arms around his waist, she gave him a big hug.  “Did the bad angel tell you where Mommy is?”

With shoulders slumping in defeat, the tall man sighed.  “No, child.  He didn’t.”  

“I miss Mommy,” the little girl said sadly.

“So do I, little one.  So do I.”  He knelt down so that he could look Trixie in the eye.  Taking her shoulders in his hands, he said, “Right.  The angel wouldn’t tell me where she was, but he promised they would keep her safe and alive as long as I work for them.  It’s the only way to bring your mother home, so that’s what I’m setting out to do.  Do you understand?”

Trixie bobbed her head once, although her face was worried.  “But... can you trust them?”

“I have to.  It’s the only choice we have, at this point.”

“So... so you’re going away again?” she asked, tears filling her eyes.  “I’ll be alone?”

Oh, bloody hell....

Blinking back a sudden stinging in the back of his eyes, Lucifer pulled Trixie to him in a tight hug.  “I have to go fight in Heaven, little one.  It’s the only way.  I... I’m sorry.  But I promise you won’t be alone.  Maze and Amenadiel will stay with you until I can bring your mother home.  And I  _ will  _ bring her home, child.”  He felt Trixie nod on his shoulder before she straightened.

“Please bring Mommy home safe,” she said.

Leaving the detective’s spawn was one of the hardest things he had ever done in his life.  Guilt washed through him at having to leave her, but it couldn’t be helped.  He had to get Chloe back -- he had to!

Rising to his feet, he looked at his demon and her lover.  “You’ll take care of the little one?  Make sure she stays unharmed?”

“We will, Brother,” Amenadiel said.  “You be careful up there.”

“Right.  I had better pick out some weapons.”

Turning his attention to the duffel bag, Lucifer pulled out the dangerous implements one at a time and inspected them.  Finally, he decided on a sword and a war hammer.  He did love the war hammer’s sharp end, although the sword was more practical for hand-to-hand combat.  A shield would have been nice, but perhaps one of the warriors upstairs would have a spare.

He buckled on the sword belt as Trixie regarded his weapons with a frown.  The fallen angel caught her eye and gave her a smile as he tucked the war hammer in the belt, as well.

“Don’t worry, child.  I’ll be back with your mother before you know it.”

She stared up at him, biting her lower lip, before she finally said, “Please don’t die.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t.”  Lucifer gave her one last hug.  “Right.  I best be on my way.”

After shrugging off his silk shirt, he tossed it on the bar counter and stepped out to the balcony.  With a final glance at the threesome, he unfurled his great white wings and launched himself into the sky.

  
  
  
  



	4. Captivity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-huge thank you!!! to my excellent beta ScooterThyme, who makes my work shine. You are the best -- thank you!!

 

 

When Chloe awoke after her kidnapping, she found herself on the floor of a basement of a house, with no windows.  The only way out was the door at the top of some rickety wooden stairs.  It seemed the angels were at least willing to make her semi-comfortable, giving her a cot, a table and chair.  A small bathroom was tucked in the corner of the space.

Pulling herself to her feet, she felt her jaw; it was swollen and painful, but none of her teeth felt loose.  A quick check told her that she still had her shiv and gun -- good.  At least she could protect herself.  Her mind automatically went to Lucifer, hoping he was still alive, and to Trixie, before taking in her own situation.  Escape was her first priority, but she had to figure out where the hell she was.  If only she had her phone!

The floorboards above her creaked as someone walked overhead.  Her eyes followed the sound of footsteps until they came to the top of the stairs.  Chloe heard the bolt unlatch and watched the basement door swing open.  Nuriel stood there with another angel she didn’t recognize.

“This is the Old God,” the man with the dark brown hair said, pointing at her from the landing.  “You’ll be in charge of her while we’re here.”

The other angel, a young looking woman with sandy brown hair, looked uncomfortable.  “Okay.  How long --”

“However long it takes.  Puriel has already sent word that Lucifer has agreed to our terms.”

Lucifer?

Chloe’s ears perked up at the sound of the fallen angel’s name.  So he was alive!  Relief flooded through her, but only for a second before another worry popped into her head.  What were they forcing him to do? She had to find out.  The two angels who abducted her wouldn’t be receptive to answering her questions, but this young one... she might have a chance with her.

“I see you’re awake,” Nuriel yelled down at her.  “You might as well make yourself comfortable -- you’ll be here for a while.  Ambriel will be attending to your needs.  Make things simple on yourself -- don’t try to escape.  If we catch you doing anything suspicious, we’ll kill you.”

“I need to eat,” she called up to them.  “I’m a human and I need food.”

Nuriel rolled his eyes.  “Whatever.  Ambriel, get her something to eat, will you?”

They both left Chloe then, locking the door behind them.  Well, at least they weren’t going to leave her to starve.  

Hoping to find an escape route that she had missed from her first assessment, she started taking a closer look at her surroundings.  Still no windows to speak of, so no escape there.  Testing the staircase, she found it so rickety that it would most likely only withstand one crossing before collapsing -- which would be when she made her escape, she decided.  In the meantime, she’d try to find out all she could from Ambriel.  Taking a seat on the cot, she waited.

After many long minutes, the angel opened the basement door and avoided the stairs by flying down quickly with a tray of food.  

“Thank you,” Chloe said, watching as Ambriel nervously placed the food on the table.  When the angel didn’t say anything, the detective said, “Can you answer a few questions for me?”

“I... I’m not supposed to talk to you,” the woman said in a shaky voice.

Chloe kept her voice calm and gentle.  “I’m not going to hurt you.  I was just wondering why you’re with those other two angels.”

“What?”  She looked surprised.

“Well, you just don’t seem... their sort.”

“Oh,” Ambriel said.  “I’m not.”

“So then why...?”

The pretty angel smiled as her eyes got a faraway look in them.  “Oh, Dokiel asked for a volunteer, so I offered to help.”

“Your boyfriend?”

Looking a little sad, Ambriel said, “No.... But I wanted to help him in some way.  I was hoping.... Well, it’s not important.”

“Ah.”  Unrequited love, then.  Chloe felt a little sorry for the angel.  “Why did he need a volunteer?

Ambriel looked around anxiously before she whispered, “He doesn’t trust Jehoel with you.  Puriel does, but Dokiel doesn’t, so he asked for someone to volunteer to be your... uh....”

“Jailer?” the detective supplied helpfully.  

Wincing, Ambriel said, “It doesn’t sound too good when you say that.”

Just then the door to the basement slammed open and Nuriel yelled down at the angel.  “What did I tell you, you idiot?  No talking!”

Flustered, Ambriel backed away quickly and flew to the door.  “I’m sorry!  Sorry, Nuriel --”

The man backhanded her, then grabbed her by the tunic and dragged her away, slamming the door behind them.  Wincing at the violence, Chloe hoped that she hadn’t put the angel into too much danger.  Ambriel seemed a nice sort; maybe they could help each other.  She could help Chloe escape, and Chloe could help  _ her _ escape Nuriel and Jehoel.

Wandering over to the table, she took a look at the food the angel had brought her.  Chinese, which smelled delicious, along with a bottle of water.  Chloe sat down to eat -- she’d need all the strength she could get if she was to escape Nuriel and Jehoel.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

The next day when Ambriel brought her breakfast, Chloe tried to find out where exactly she was.  

“Sit and keep me company,” she invited as she started eating the eggs and toast the angel had brought her.  

Ambriel paced a bit, looking nervously at the detective.  “I’m not supposed to.”

“It’s okay,” Chloe said with a conspiratorial wink.  “I won’t tell.”

The woman finally perched on the edge of the cot, like a bird ready to take flight.  

“I miss the outside,” Chloe began.  “What’s it like out there?”

“Uh... what do you mean?”

“Is it a sunny day?”

“It’s... very hot.”

“Really?  How hot?”

“Like I imagine Hell to be,” the angel said with a little laugh.  “Not that I’ve ever gone....”

“No, of course not,” Chloe agreed.  “But there must be a lot of trees outside to provide some shade.”

Ambriel shook her head.  “No, nothing’s out there.  I’ve never seen the like.  Heaven is all trees, grass, cool lakes, and streams.  There isn’t any water out there as far as the eye can see.  There isn’t  _ anything _ out there.  It does get cold at night though.  This Earth climate is so odd.”

Damn it.  That meant she was in the middle of the desert.  Hopefully still in California...?  

“So pretty isolated...?”

“No one for miles, which is what Jehoel wanted, in case you....”  The angel’s voice petered out.

“Escape?” Chloe finished.

Ambriel nodded.  “You’ll die out there.  It’s best to stay with us.  We’ll let you go after the war is over.  That was the deal.”

Chloe leaned toward her companion as she drank her coffee.  “Can you tell me about this deal?”

“Well --”

“Ambriel!”  The angel jumped at Nuriel’s voice at the top of the stairs.  “Get up here!”

“I have to go,” she said, and before Chloe could say another word the angel had flown to the top of the stairs and was gone.

Well, she certainly had given Chloe a lot to think about.  Even if she got away from Nuriel and Jehoel, she’d be stuck in the middle of nowhere with no water and no transportation.  It was just as bad as, if not worse than, being trapped in the basement and cared for.  With a resigned sigh, the detective realized she was stuck.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Most of the time she was left alone, and in those days she felt like she would go stir-crazy, worrying over Lucifer and Trixie.  The one consolation she had was Ambriel, who had started warming up to her.  Realizing that Chloe had no escape route, the angel stopped being quite as nervous.  The detective worked hard to gain Ambriel’s trust.  

After a week, the angel finally started talking about what was going on in Heaven.  “Our soldiers are finally pushing back Father’s troops.  Now that we have Lucifer on our side, we can’t lose,” she said proudly.

“Lucifer is fighting for the rebellion?”

“Well of course, because we have you.”

Chloe squeezed her eyes shut, wishing for the thousandth time that she could escape.  “Listen, Ambriel, are you sure you couldn’t help me get away from here?  I’ve told you before, I have a daughter who needs me--”

“The war will be over soon,” Ambriel said firmly.  “We’ll let you go after we win.  That was the deal.  But don’t worry -- it won’t be long now.”

For a long moment Chloe was silent, before finally voicing the question she had been dying to ask.  “How... how is Lucifer?”

“Lucifer?”  Ambriel blinked at the question.  “Don’t you know already?  I mean, they say you have him in some sort of thrall --”

Running a frustrated hand through her hair, Chloe said, “That is the most absurd thing I’ve ever heard.  I’m  _ human. _  I don’t have anyone in any kind of thrall.”

“But Father said --”

“He was wrong.”  She took a deep breath.  “Look, Ambriel, I know it may be hard for you to believe, but I love Lucifer.  That’s why he’s fighting for you -- not because I have him under a spell, but because we love each other and he wants me back home safely.”

The angel stared at her, horrified.  “But -- but how can you love him?  He’s evil!”

“Oh for the love of --” Rolling her eyes, Chloe ground out, “He’s not evil.  That was a lie your father and Michael started.  What are you fighting for, if you still believe their lies?”

Ambriel had the grace to look ashamed.

In a gentler voice, the detective asked, “Now can you please tell me how Lucifer is?” 

“I... I’m sorry, but I don’t know,” the angel said.  “No one comes to give news except for Jehoel.  He says everything is going according to plan and that the rebellion is overcoming Father’s troops.  I wish I could tell you how Lucifer is doing, but I don’t know.  Jehoel does say, though, that he fights... well, he fights like the very Devil.”  She giggled at her own joke.

That sounded like Lucifer.  Chloe just hoped that he wasn’t taking any reckless chances.

 

 

________________________________________

  
  


 

Three days later, while Ambriel was keeping Chloe company as she ate her lunch, the basement door flew open.  Surprised, both women looked up to see Nuriel and Jehoel on the landing.  The detective hadn’t seen Jehoel since being captured; a bad feeling crept over her.  Surreptitiously she moved her hand down to her boot, where her gun was.  She eased the weapon out and held it in her lap, under her napkin.  She watched as both angels flew down into the basement, crowding the little space with their presence.

“You’re looking well,” the redheaded angel said as he looked at Chloe sitting at the table.  “Better than I thought you’d be.  Seems like Sister’s been taking good care of you.”

“Is the war over?” Ambriel asked.  “Can we let Chloe go now?”

Nuriel snorted derisively.  “Let the Old God go?  Are you insane?”

“But-- but the deal....  We have to keep up our end of the deal,” the female angel protested.

Jehoel looked at his sister coldly.  “The deal is this.  We kill the Old God.”

Pulling a knife out of his belt, Nuriel approached Chloe with a smile on his face and murder in his eyes.

 


	5. Death and Destruction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-big thank you to my excellent beta, ScooterThyme, who makes my work shine! Thank you!!!

 

 

“The deal is this.  We kill the Old God.”

Chloe’s blood ran cold at Jehoel’s statement.  This was it, then -- her only opportunity for escape, if she wanted to live.  Her detective mind started running through different scenarios, all in the span of a handful of seconds, as she tried to figure out her best chance for survival.

Knife raised, Nuriel approached Chloe with deadly intent.  Standing abruptly, Chloe kicked her chair out of the way and raised her gun.

“Freeze!” she yelled.  “Don’t take another step!”

Sneering, Nuriel’s voice took on a scornful quality.  “Oooh, so scared!  Looks like the Old God’s got herself a gun.  Like that’s going to do anything.”

Ambriel scrambled between her brother and Chloe, holding her arms out protectively in front of the woman.  “Nuriel, don’t do this!  We’re supposed to let her go --”

With blinding speed, the dark-haired angel’s fist shot out as he punched his sister.  The house groaned from the force of the impact as Ambriel was thrown into the wall from the blow.  Nuriel turned back to Chloe with a vicious smile on his face.  

“Go ahead, Old God.  See if you can harm me with that toy of yours.”

Chloe knew she had to take down Nuriel and have him stay down.  Bringing the gun up, she fired point blank into his head.

His shocked expression was almost comical as he crumpled to the floor, blood pouring from the large opening that the exiting bullet had made in the back of his head.  Jehoel gawked at Chloe as she turned her gun on him.  Her finger squeezed the trigger --

And then the gun was suddenly missing from her hand.  Jehoel was standing beside her, instead of in front of her.  What the hell had happened?!

The angel punched her in the face and she went down, hitting the floor hard.  She lay there, stunned, as her brain screamed for her to get up.  The knife -- she had to get her knife, although she wasn’t sure how effective it would be against her attacker.  At least it would be something, though.  Her hand clawed at her boot, and finally drew the shiv hidden there.

As Chloe pulled herself to her feet, Ambriel suddenly tackled her brother from the side, slamming him into the basement wall.  Light glinted off of a knife as Jehoel pulled it from his belt; it arced down as the angel stabbed his sister, who lurched away.  Chloe’s captor approached her, stalking her as she backed away from him until she hit a wall.

“Well, aren’t you full of surprises?” Jehoel hissed.  He lunged at the detective with his knife.  Chloe deflected the blade with her shiv, but the force of Jehoel’s blow was so great that it knocked it out of her hand.  The angel smiled as he bore down on the defenseless woman.

“Time to say your prayers, Old God,” he said, as he buried the knife into her stomach.

Pain ripped through Chloe, and she squeezed her eyes shut as she collapsed onto the floor.  No, this wasn’t happening.  She couldn’t die now --

As she lay there, she felt a cold chill start to settle into her bones.  The pain was so overwhelming that she didn’t even know when Jehoel slid the knife out of her, or feel when he tore her bloody shirt off.  

_ Lucifer....  Trixie.... _

With that final thought, she gave in to the darkness.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Lucifer suddenly looked up from the carnage surrounding him, and glanced around.  His brow furrowed.  He thought he had heard Chloe’s voice, calling his name --

“What’s wrong, sir?” The soldier beside him asked

For a moment the fallen angel forgot where he was and looked at the man next to him as if he had never seen him before.  “What?”  Lucifer shook his head as they resumed walking through the field of dead angels.  “No.... It’s nothing.”  He looked at the butchered bodies around him and frowned.  “We need to get a funeral pyre going.”

“But... they are Father’s troops --”

Lucifer gave the angel a hard look.  “Bloody hell, they are still our brothers and sisters!  Gather up some of the soldiers and get this going.  I’m heading back -- I need to talk to Puriel and Dokiel.”

Spreading his wings, he launched into the sky and headed toward the main encampment of the rebels.  A feeling of foreboding filled him, sending shivers through his frame despite the warm sunshine beating down on him.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Lucifer watched the shadows get longer over the green hills of Heaven as he waited for an audience with the leaders of the rebellion.  He had fulfilled his part of the deal by beating dear old Dad’s troops -- now they had to fulfill theirs.  It was about time they gave him back Chloe -- his heart, his soul.  Bloody hell, he was dying without her, and he missed her little one....  He just wanted to go home and be free of Heaven and all of its angels.

A soldier finally called him into the large tent.  Leaving his weapons outside with another soldier, Lucifer entered.  Puriel and Dokiel were huddled over a table, whispering furiously, while glancing at him with... fear?  Nervousness?  Frowning, the fallen angel approached.

“The war’s practically won,” he reported to the two rebel leaders.  “I want Chloe back now, as we agreed.”

“Uh, yes, we really need to talk to you about that,” Dokiel said as he stood in front of the table, as if to hide something.

Suspicion reared its ugly head as Lucifer studied the two men in front of him.  “Why?”

“Look, you’ve been under the thrall of the Old God, but now... how do you feel?”  Puriel asked.

“Bloody hell -- what do you mean, how do I feel?” Lucifer spat.  “I am not under Chloe’s spell -- I never was!  I feel the same -- I want her back.  Now give her back to me, you bloody pillocks!”

“Well, things aren’t so simple anymore --” Puriel broke off as Lucifer moved like lightning, rushing to the angel and gripping the front of his tunic in a fierce handhold.  

Shaking his prey like a doll, Lucifer snarled, “What the bloody hell are you on about?!”  The fallen angel’s eyes caught sight of what they had been trying to hide from him.

A shirt.  A bloody shirt.  He recognized it instantly.

_ Chloe’s shirt. _

“What have you done?” he whispered as he dropped Puriel and grabbed the material frantically.  So much blood....  “No, no... what the bloody hell have you done?!”  His eyes were wide with horror as he looked at the two men.

“This isn’t our fault!  We didn’t want --” Dokiel said, while Puriel chimed in, “Jehoel said this was the right thing to do --”

“Tell me this isn’t what I think it is.”  Lucifer’s voice was dangerously quiet, in contrast to the rage building in every fiber of his being.  

“I’m sorry, but your Old God is dead,” Puriel said.  

The statement shattered Lucifer’s mind like a stone breaking the stillness of a pond, with the words rippling through his head over and over.  Chloe was dead?  No.  It couldn’t be.  They had to be wrong -- they just had to be!

His eyes were wild as he stared hard at the angels in front of him.  “You lie,” he growled.

Puriel shook his head as he pointed at the shirt clutched in Lucifer’s hands.  “No, Jehoel said to give that to you as proof.  He killed her himself.”

_ No no no no no.... _

Lucifer looked up at the angel, fury making his eyes burn bright red.  He was so angry he couldn’t even think.  “We had a bloody deal.”  His voice had dropped into a guttural snarl.  His hand lashed out, gripping the angel’s robes.  “You said you’d let her go!”

“She was an Old God,” Dokiel interjected as he tried to free his partner from Lucifer’s grip.  “Think about it -- it’s better this way!  You know she would never have been allowed to remain in the long run --”

_ “You said you’d let her go!” _

“We know it was a sacrifice for you, but just think of the good you’ve done for us.  Father has been defeated!  You will be our new ruler!”  Puriel managed to say.

“How many times do I have to tell you -- I have no interest in being your new ruler!  All I want -- wanted was... was....”  He broke off, unable to go on.  

Dokiel said, “You’ve been an excellent general.  You’ll be an even finer leader.”

“I don’t want to lead you -- I want Chloe!” Lucifer roared.  “Give her back to me!”

“Brother, she was an Old God!  Rejoice, you’re free from her thrall --”  Puriel cried.

Something snapped -- perhaps it was his soul, fracturing into a million shards.  Everything inside of him spiraled out of control so quickly that he couldn’t even think.  Never before had he felt so great a rage as he did at this very moment.  He started screaming, and as he did so, his lightbringer energy, the very thing that made him the morning star, burst into a furious explosion like a massive bomb, destroying everything for miles around.  The ground rippled and convulsed like a live thing as the shock wave traveled over it.  Nothing -- no one -- could withstand the terrible fury of that pure white heat.  Everything was decimated, except Lucifer at the very heart of the blast.

Completely spent, he collapsed in the epicenter of destruction, and lay there, insensate.  How long he lay there, he didn’t know.  The only thing that kept ringing in his head were the words that Chloe was dead.

This was worse than when Sachiel had taken Chloe’s memories away and left him to suffer for a month.  At least then he could hope to catch a glimpse of his detective.  This... this was so much more horrifying.

Filled with anguish, he couldn’t even think straight.  All he felt was an overwhelming emptiness.  What would he do without her?  How could he even function without her in the world somewhere?

But wait -- Chloe was an Old God, wasn’t she?  Lucifer’s tortured mind grabbed a hold of that thought like it was a life raft.  She had been reborn a hundred times, hadn’t she?  With any luck, she would be reborn again.  It boggled his mind that she had waited three thousand years for him.  How had she withstood the loneliness?  The suffering?  How would  _ he? _

Then again....  If she was being reborn at this very moment, how would he possibly be able to find her in a world of seven billion people?  Even if he was lucky enough to chance upon her right away, he’d have to wait years -- years! -- before she’d be of age for him to approach her.  On top of that, would she even remember him?  Or would her mind be a complete blank, where he was concerned?  All that they shared, all that they experienced -- would it all be lost?  The questions and uncertainty pounded his brain, compounding the desolation that shot through every fiber of his being.  He couldn’t stand it.  How could he endure?

And then there was the possibility that perhaps she didn’t want to be reborn.  What if she was sick and tired of his bloody family and their wretched manipulations?  What if she went back to her own family on that other plane, never to return?  The thought terrified him.  What would he do if he never saw her again?  How would he survive?  How could he live the rest of eternity without her tender love and care?  

There was no one else.  There could  _ be _ no one else.

Stop.  He had to stop thinking.  If he kept on with this, he’d bloody well go stark raving mad.  Already insanity sat on the fringes of consciousness, taunting him.  He had to stop.  Just... stop.  Pull himself together.  Chloe wouldn’t want him to be a blubbering mess.

As he started to get himself up from the ground, he heard the rustle of feathers and then angels were there, subduing him.  They bound him with ropes and chains; he tried to escape, to fight back, but was helpless in his weakened state.  Before he knew it, he was trussed up so completely that he couldn’t even move.  When he started screaming his fury and grief like a wounded animal, his captors gagged him to stop the terrible sound.

Flying to an area just outside the Silver City, they threw Lucifer into a deep pit like some monster, and left him there. 


	6. Used then Discarded

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super huge thank you to my insanely talented, amazing beta, ScooterThyme! You are awesome!!!

 

 

“Chloe?  Can you hear me?”

The voice came from far away.  She slowly opened her eyes and tried to focus.  Raphael came into her field of vision.  There was a slight pain in her stomach, but nothing like what it had been.

“Rafe?” she managed to say.  “Am I dead?”

“No,” he whispered as he gave her a crooked smile.  “Thank Father.  How do you feel?”

“Some pain, but... okay, I think.”

Chloe stared up, focusing on the ceiling.  She could see floor joists above her, meaning that she was still in the basement.  There was a chill in the air; glancing down she saw a towel draped over her, on top of her bra.  It confused her.  What happened to her shirt?  Why was Rafe there?  “How... how did -- why are you here?”

“Ambriel called me.  I got here just in the nick of time,” Raphael said.  She noticed that his complexion was gray, and his expression grim.

“Are you all right?” she asked.

Swallowing hard, he said, “No.”

That had her propping herself up on her elbows.  “What’s wrong?” she asked, anxiety winding its way through her.  “What happened?”

Speechless, Raphael waved to the side; Chloe turned her head to follow the motion.  Lying on the floor nearby was Ambriel, covered in blood.  

“Oh no...” she whispered.  “No....”

“She was almost gone, just like you.  I had to choose between the two of you -- I couldn’t heal you both at the same time.”  He rubbed his face hard, as if to erase his grief.  “I couldn’t save her.  I tried, after I knew you were out of danger, but... it was too late.”

“Rafe, I’m so sorry....”

“I haven’t had any contact with her for many millennia....  We were never close, but I remember that she was nice,” he said sadly.  “I don’t regret choosing you over her, but... I feel like I failed her.”

Chloe pulled herself to a sitting position and embraced the healer as he wept.  Tears ran down her face as well.  “She was a good angel,” she said softly.  “She tried to stop Jehoel and Nuriel from killing me....”

They held each other a long time, bonding in their grief, until Raphael finally pulled away.  Wiping the tears away with the back of his hand, he gave a half-laugh.  “Well, at least I can bring you home now.”

“I can’t wait,” she said.  “God, I miss Trixie.  And... is Lucifer home now?”

“Not as far as I know,” Raphael told her.  “The rebels had just won a decisive battle when Ambriel called me.  Even if the fighting’s over, Lucifer will have to stay a few days while everything gets cleaned up.  He’ll need to be debriefed, as well.  You’ll be proud of him, Chloe.  He’s a great general, I’ve heard.”

“I’m always proud of him,” she said, wrapping the towel around her.  “By the way, what did you do with my shirt?”

Raphael blinked.  “Your shirt?  You didn’t have a shirt on when I got here.”

“How odd,” Chloe said, puzzled, then shrugged.  It really didn’t matter.  She was finally going home.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Lucifer lay at the bottom of the pit, looking up at the stars just beginning twinkle as night fell.  How beautiful they were, like his Chloe.  Despair tore at him, as did insanity.  He had no idea how he was going to survive.  He didn’t want to, anymore.  He just wanted to curl up with his memories....

Eventually some angels -- he didn’t bother to even glance at them, for he just didn’t give a bloody damn anymore -- climbed down into the hole and lifted him out, then carried him a fair distance to the palace.  It was a rough journey; Lucifer felt ill from motion sickness.  After climbing a number of stairs, they tossed him down onto the floor of his father’s solar, where Yahweh waited for him.

“Hello, Samael,” the bearded man said.  “You’re not looking so well, are you?”

Lucifer stared with distress at his father.  No, no, no.  It couldn’t be!  What the bloody hell was he doing here?  Hadn’t they defeated him?  

His father bent down close to him.  “I have to thank you, you know,” he said quietly.  “You always do just as I anticipate.  You killed all of the rebels and eliminated all those who oppose me.  Well done, son.  Well done!

“You must be wondering why I’m here when I was so close to being defeated.  Well, my wayward son, I was never in any danger of being overthrown.  Jehoel was my double-agent, you see.”  Yahweh chuckled at his own cunning.  “ _We_ kidnapped your woman -- not the rebels, although those fools thought that _they_ had control.  We held her all this time.  We knew if she died, you would kill the ones you thought were responsible, so we let the rebels attack diversionary troops until their victory seemed assured.  Once they all gathered around you, we released you -- our secret weapon -- unto them.  It worked like a charm.  Thank you, son.”

Yahweh leaned very close to Lucifer, whose face was a study of horror.  “I told you that you’d regret not fighting for me in the first place.  Foolish boy -- who do you think you are, to defy me?”  

Laughing, the bearded man suddenly straightened.  “Now then, I do need you back in Hell where you belong, but you’re useless as long as you pine for your dead Old God.  You’re too valuable for me to waste.  You need to go back to being the son I always wanted you to be.”

Fear filled Lucifer at his father’s statement.  Whatever his father was planning, it wouldn’t be good.  Dread filled him when his father called for Sachiel to be found.  In a matter of minutes, Lucifer heard her voice at the doorway.

“You called, Father?”

Lucifer watched as his father rose and met the female angel.

“Yes, Sachiel, I need your help.”  The fallen angel saw his sister approach.  “Samael... My good son Samael has been infected by the Old God,” his father said.  “I need you to remove all traces of her from his mind.”

No, no, no no no nononono! Lucifer’s mind screamed.  Chloe was the one good thing in his life -- Sachiel couldn’t take that away from him!  How would he survive without even his memories of her?  He tried to protest, but nothing got past the gag.

There was a long pause as Sachiel approached, bending down and touching his forehead.  Her eyes were concerned as she looked at his bound figure.  Glancing up at her father, she said, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.  His memories of her are so entwined with his soul that it could do irreparable damage.”

“I want her gone from his mind, Sachiel,” he heard his father say.

“But --”

His father’s voice was harsh.  “You can do it to humans.  Surely you can do it to your brother?”  

“I-it’s different with angels, Father.  You, of all people, should know that.”

His father changed his tactics, saying in a cajoling voice, “Sachiel, my dear Sachiel, surely you don’t want to disappoint your father?  Just try, my dear.  You know it’s the reason why I created you....  Show me your skills, daughter.”

Squeezing his eyes shut for a moment, Lucifer feared the worst.  He shook his head violently, his eyes pleading, but his sister just looked down at him sadly.

“It’s my will, daughter.  Do you disobey me?” Yahweh said.

The fallen angel watched as Sachiel closed her eyes.  When she opened them again, they were full of torment.  “Very well, Father.”  She leaned close to him and whispered, “Forgive me, Brother.”

Lucifer tried to avoid her hand as she put it to his forehead, but couldn’t move from all the ropes binding him.  He screamed behind the gag as a pink light flared from her hand.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

“It’s done, Father,” Sachiel said as she stood up and looked at the bound man at her feet.  Lucifer’s eyes were blank, his face slack.  “It’s as I feared.  Something broke inside of him -- I felt it as I worked on him.  It’s not something I can undo.”

Walking up to her side, Yahweh looked down at the prone figure and frowned.  “Well, that was unexpected.  A shame.  He would have been of so much more use if you could have reverted him to a state of mind before he left Hell.”  He took a deep breath.  “Well, no matter.  We’ll have him Fall -- the Earth still needs its Devil.  The humans won’t care if he’s a little... catatonic, and his demons can care for him.”

He walked away, leaving Sachiel staring sadly at her brother.  She felt awful.  This was something no angel should have to endure, no matter what he had done.  Well, there was one thing she could try to do, to make up for it.  Hurrying out of the palace, she started to pray for Raphael to come.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

When they walked outside of the house, Chloe was surprised to see night falling.  She hadn’t realized it had gotten so late.  Looking around, she saw that they were in the middle of a vast desert, with nothing around for miles.  Without a car she would have surely died, had she managed to escape the basement.  Another thing to be grateful to Ambriel for -- convincing her not to make a foolhardy escape.  Would the angel end up back in Heaven?  Chloe hoped that wherever the she was, Ambriel was in peace.

Raphael had to burn the bodies, so she waited while he pulled Nuriel’s and Ambriel’s remains out of the house.  Together they made a makeshift funeral pyre out of some dead tumbleweeds.  

“We don’t really need much fuel,” explained the angel as he carefully set the bodies on the dead plants.  “Once their wings catch fire, they’ll burn quite quickly.”

As he lit the dry brush on fire, Chloe asked, “Where do dead angels go?”

“If we’re lucky, we find ourselves back in Heaven.  If we’re unlucky, Hell.  If we’re really unlucky... I suspect we become part of the ether.  I’m not really sure.  Father used to bring us all back to Heaven when we were young angels and stupidly killing each other, but for a long time there hadn’t been too many deaths -- although there are still injuries.  We healers are a busy lot.”

“So this war....  Everyone just... comes back?”

Raphael shook his head.  “Not that I’ve seen.  Usually angels are resurrected almost immediately, so if they haven’t been brought back by now, they aren’t returning.  Perhaps it’s because Father is being dethroned...?”

Together they watched the bodies burn until there was nothing left but ash.

Finally, Raphael turned to Chloe.  “Are you ready to go home now?”

“More than ready,” she replied with a smile.  He swept her up in his arms.

“I’m sorry for the delay, but you’ll be home before you know it.”

Sure enough, before she could even blink, she was on Lucifer’s balcony.  Her mouth fell open.  “What the hell...?”

“Slowing down time -- it’s a trick we angels have,” Raphael said proudly.  “Why don’t you find yourself a shirt?  I’ll see if I can locate your little one.”

“Amenadiel and Maze have the apartment downstairs.”

“I’ll look there first.”

Chloe had just put on a fresh shirt when Trixie ran out of the elevator and barreled into her.  Kneeling down, Chloe hugged her while the little girl bawled her eyes out.  Maze and Raphael brought up the rear.  

“I missed you so much, Mommy!” Trixie cried.  “I missed you!”

“I missed you too, monkey,” her mother said, her own eyes overflowing with tears.  “I can’t tell you how much I missed you.”  They stayed like that for a long moment, until Trixie’s cries started turning into snuffles.  Pulling back, Chloe asked, “Have you been good?”

Trixie nodded.  “Yup.  Gone to school and everything, even when I didn’t want to.  Maze and Amenadiel took good care of me.”

The detective looked up at the demon and the angel.  “Thank you both.”

Maze shrugged nonchalantly.  “Yeah, well, the kid isn’t too much of a monster.”  Chloe smiled at that, sensing that Maze felt a lot warmer toward Trixie than she was letting on.

“Where’s Lucifer?”

Chloe looked down at her little girl.  ‘He’s still in Heaven.”

“But... but he promised he’d bring you home!  If you’re here, he should be here too, shouldn’t he?”  Worry clouded Trixie’s face.  

“I’m sure he’d be here if he could be, baby.”  The little girl looked like she was going to start crying again, so Chloe gave her another hug and lifted her up in her arms.  

“I miss Lucifer,” Trixie said.

“I do too, baby.  I do too.”

Raphael suddenly got a faraway look in his eyes.  Both women gave him a concerned look.

“What is it?” asked Chloe.

“Yeah, what the hell is it?” Maze asked.

“Sachiel’s calling me.  She sounds upset -- something about Lucifer,” the healer said.  “I better get up there.  Stay safe, all of you.”

“Take me with you,” Maze said, grabbing his arm.  “I want to know what’s happened.”

Raphael shook his head.  “No, it’s best I go alone.”

“Bring him home, Rafe,” Chloe said.  “Please.”

He nodded.  “I’ll do my best.”

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Yahweh called a number of angels around him as group of guards hauled the catatonic Lucifer to the center of the gathering.  

“Here we have the perpetrator of this whole rebellion.”  Yahweh circled the prone man, speaking loudly for the benefit of all the angels around.  “Not only did he fail in his rebellion against me, he killed all of his own soldiers when they failed him.  

“He is indeed the Devil and must be sent back to Hell.  Expel him from the Western Gate.  I’ll need some some of you to carry him to the Western Edge.  We shall throw him off as we did the last time he rebelled.”  After his speech, Yahweh nodded to the angels around Lucifer.

The flock picked up their bound brother, and took him to the Western Edge of Heaven.  Lucifer didn’t even struggle, although those carrying him hardly expected any movement.  They had trussed him up good and tight despite his mental state.  The trek to the Western Edge was long, but the fallen angel didn’t even notice.

In one giant heave, the angels threw him over the edge of Heaven, and Lucifer Fell.

 


	7. The Return Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super huge thank you to the most awesome of all betas, ScooterThyme! Thank you for your hard work!

 

 

Raphael landed in front of one of the many apartment complexes in the Silver City and knocked on Sachiel’s door.  When she whipped it open, he was surprised to see his sister in a state of fretfulness -- Sachiel, who was usually the very picture of calm.

“I got your message, Sachi.  What’s happened?  What’s this about Lucifer?” he asked as she pulled him into her apartment.

The black-haired angel wrung her hands in distress.  “Raphael, I’ve done something horrible.  Father asked me to, but -- “  She broke off, and buried her face in her hands.  “What have I done?”

“Come on, sit down,” her brother urged her as they sat down on a nearby couch.  “What happened?”

“You’ve heard about what Lucifer’s done?”

Raphael blinked.  “No....  Tell me, Sachi.”

“He’s killed all the rebels.”

 _“What?!”_  Confusion washed over the healer.  “I don’t understand.  Why would he...?”

Sachiel shook her head.  “I’m not sure what happened.  It had to do with the Old God, I suspect, because after he killed everyone, Father sent the Warrior Elite to catch him.  They brought him here, bound and gagged.  His eyes, Raphael....  Oh Father, his eyes --”  Tears welled in her eyes and spilled onto her pale cheeks.  “They begged me --”

“Sachi, you’re not making any sense.  Please -- tell me what happened!”

His sister wiped the tears away, but they kept flowing.  “Father wanted me to erase all of Lucifer’s memories of the Old God --”

“No.  Oh Heavenly Father, no.  Sachi, please tell me you didn’t do that.”

She nodded guiltily.  “Father said I had to, that it was what I was made for.  I warned him that it wasn’t the same as with humans, but he told me to do it anyway.  Lucifer’s eyes -- they begged me not to....”  The angel covered her face and wept.  “I shouldn’t have... I shouldn’t have --”

Pulling his sister in his arms, he rubbed her back comfortingly.  “There, there.  It’s okay, Sachi.  Just tell me the rest.”

“When I went to pull his memories out, they were so tightly woven around his soul that I couldn’t.  I tried to burn them out instead --”

Raphael groaned.  “Oh, Sachi, no....”

“And then something broke inside our brother.  I felt it when it happened.  I tried to fix it, but I couldn’t.”  She started weeping bitterly.  “What have I done, Raphael?  What have I done?!”

“Look, it’s not your fault,” Raphael soothed.  His face darkened as he thought of their manipulative father.  “Father should have never asked you to do that.  Where’s Lucifer now?  Maybe I can help.”

“I’m not sure -- I heard that they were going to have him Fall --”

“Oh crap.  I’ve got to go, Sachi.  I’ll do what I can.”  Raphael got up to go but Sachiel held onto his arm for a moment.

“Tell Lucifer -- tell him I’m sorry.”

Her brother patted her hand.  “I’m sure he’ll understand, Sachi.”  And then he was out the door, spreading out his wings and speeding like a bullet for the Western Edge.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

It took a while, but he finally caught up to Lucifer in midair as he Fell.  Raphael’s hands clawed at his brother, trying to get a good grip, but the chains made the fallen angel terribly heavy.  For a moment the healer was afraid he’d end up Falling with Lucifer, but he was finally able to change their trajectory and head for Earth.  Afraid that he’d drop his catatonic brother, Raphael wrapped some of the extra length of chains around his arms so that he wouldn’t drop him.  He prayed he’d get them to Chloe in one piece.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Chloe and Trixie snuggled on the couch together, waiting for Raphael to return, while Maze, unable to sit still, left them to go downstairs and see her boyfriend.  The little girl clutched her mother’s waist tightly, as if afraid to let go.  She told her mother about school and then unknowingly dropped a bombshell.

“Daddy came by.  He was angry that you had Maze and Amenadiel looking after me.  He said Lucifer’s a bad influence that’s making you neglect me.  He said we should either all live together or I should go live with him.”

“What?!”  Chloe was horrified.  “He said that?!”

Trixie nodded solemnly.  “If we all live together again, what’s going to happen to Lucifer?  Will we not see him anymore?” she asked anxiously.

Chloe’s mind was racing.  It was true that Trixie had been with Amenadiel and Maze for ten days while she had been kidnapped, but that didn’t mean she was neglecting Trixie...!  In fact, Dan had been the one who had neglected their daughter, always being too busy with work to really give a damn... until recently.  Until Lucifer.

Closing her eyes, she imagined smashing Dan in the face with her fist, which was very satisfying... but no.  That would never do.  Sighing, she opened her eyes again and looked down at her daughter.  “Don’t worry, Trixie.  You’re not going to live with Daddy, and Lucifer is going to be with us from now on.  I’ll talk to Daddy about this, okay?”  Damn Dan, he shouldn’t even be involving Trixie in this, she thought darkly.

“When do you think Rafe is going to bring Lucifer home?” Trixie asked.  “Soon?”

“I hope so.  Let’s go out on the balcony and look at the stars.  What do you say?”  At the little girl’s nod, Chloe picked her up and carried her in her arms.  Walking out onto the balcony, mother and daughter scanned the dark, clear sky.  It was very late.  The moon had set; the city glowed in the darkness, sending light upwards into the sky, obscuring the wealth of stars overhead.

“It’s pretty up here,” Trixie said.  “Look, Mommy!  There’s a shooting star!”

“Quick, make a wish!” Chloe said.  

The little girl screwed her eyes shut tightly and said, “I wish Lucifer would come home soon.”

Chloe watched the shooting star get brighter and... closer.  Oh god -- that was no shooting star.  She turned and ran with Trixie back inside, right before Raphael came crashing onto their balcony with his precious cargo, hitting the deck very hard and skidding to a stop.

“Wow, those wishes really work!” Trixie said, amazed, as Chloe lowered her to the floor.  They both ran to the horrible tangle of limbs, feathers and chains.  

“Lucifer!”  Chloe cried as she lifted Raphael’s wing and saw her bound lover in his arms.  “Oh my god, Lucifer!”

Panting hard, Raphael slowly levered himself up, disengaging the chains from his arms.  He saw the detective’s distraught face as she tried to push aside the heavy steel links.  “Here, Chloe, let me help.  The chains are really heavy.”

Trixie stood by, nervously watching a few feet way, as the adults struggled to untangle the ropes and heavy steel that bound the fallen angel.  Chloe gently untied the gag and pulled it from Lucifer’s mouth.  Dismay filled her as she took in his blank, unseeing eyes and slack expression.

Turning, she addressed her daughter.  “Trixie, baby, can you go downstairs and get Maze?”  Trixie bobbed her head and went running to the elevator.

“Lucifer?” Chloe asked gently.  “Can you hear me?”

The fallen angel just stared skyward, unseeing.  Unaware.  Unresponsive.

“He’s been like that, all the way here,” Raphael said.  

Fury shot through the detective as she took in her lover’s condition, making her hands shake.  “What have they done to him?”

“Father asked Sachiel to remove his memories.  She tried, but something went wrong in the process.  She feels awful about it, so she called me to see if I could help.  Father’s men had thrown him over the Western Edge before I arrived.  I got up there as fast as I could, but unfortunately, it took time to catch up with Luci as he Fell.”

Chloe glanced at Raphael then.  “Damn them!  How could they do this?”

“I don’t know.  Father... Father is becoming unrecognizable,”  he said.  She watched silently as the chestnut-haired man unwound the chains from Lucifer’s great wings.  “We need to get these off of him,” Raphael said.  “Do you have anything small enough to pick these locks?”

Trixie came back with Maze just at that instant.  The demon ran up to the fallen angel, distress and anger in her face.  “Lucifer!” she cried.  Getting no response, she grabbed her boss by the ropes and chains wrapped around him and shook him hard.   _“Lucifer!”_ Snarling, her hand shot out and grabbed Raphael by the neck.  “What the hell did you do to him?!”

“Mazikeen, Raphael saved him!” Chloe cried as she tried to pry the demon off of the angel.  She glanced at her daughter.  “Trixie’s watching.”

With an angry baring of teeth, Maze shoved Raphael away from her.  “Stay away from him, you motherf--”

 _“Mazikeen!”_  Chloe gave the demon a hard look.  “Can you help us get these chains off of him?”

“Let me do it,” she growled as she muttered under her breath, “Useless angel....  Useless so-called goddess....”

After cutting off all the ropes, she used the tip of her Hell-forged blade and worked on the locks.  It took time, for Heaven-forged locks were not easy to pick, but eventually they heard the satisfactory clicks as the pins in the tumblers fell into place.  All three adults and even Trixie helped to take off the heavy steel links.

Lucifer’s expression still hadn’t changed, and he was completely unresponsive to anything they did.  Chloe’s heart clenched at the sight.  She reached out and caressed his stubble-lined cheek.

“Oh, Lucifer, what have they done to you?” she asked him.

Trixie looked on in concern.  “Mommy, is Lucifer going to be okay?”

“I don’t know, monkey, but I sure hope so.”

“It might be wise if Trixie stays with Maze and Amenadiel tonight,” Raphael advised.  “I have no idea what state my brother’s mind is in.  If -- when he wakes up, he could be... unpredictable.”

Chloe nodded, although she knew Lucifer would never hurt them.  Turning to her daughter, she began, “Trixie....”

“I want to stay,” she said stubbornly.  

“I know you do, but I don’t think Lucifer would like you seeing him like this.  Let Mommy try to wake him up, okay?  I promise you that you can stay with him all day tomorrow.”

“But Mommy, please?” begged the little girl.  “He needs us both!”

“I know, but just for tonight, okay?  Can you do that for me?”

Reluctantly, the little girl nodded once, disappointment all over her face.  Maze stood up and took the little girl’s hand.  “Come on, kid.  Let’s go beat up Amenadiel -- he likes that.”  She turned to the remaining adults.  “We’ll be back tomorrow morning, Decker.  He better be awake by then, or heads will fly.”  The demon glared at Raphael meaningfully before they both left.

Raphael ran a hand over his face and took a hold of Lucifer’s slack hand.  A blue light surrounded his grip as he did a quick assessment of his brother.  Shaking his head, he said, “This isn’t something I can fix.  If it was his body, I could fix it, but it’s his soul.”  He glanced up at Chloe, giving her a regretful look.  “I’m sorry, Chloe.”

The detective shook her head.  “It’s all right, Rafe.  You got him here.  That’s what counts.”

Raphael sat back on his heels, pity in his eyes as he looked at the human and her Devil lover.  “Can I help you put him somewhere, before I go?  He can’t stay out here.”

“His bed.”

The angel lifted his brother in his arms and carried him as Chloe led the way.  After gently putting the catatonic man down on the covers, Raphael turned to leave.  The detective caught his arm.

“Raphael, thank you,” she said.  “You don’t know what this means to me.”

The chestnut-haired man smiled down at her.  “You’re welcome.  Thank _you_ for making him a better angel.”  He leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek.  “Take care of yourself, Chloe.  I know you’ll take good care of my brother.”

With that, he strode out to the balcony and flew upwards, returning to Heaven.

Chloe turned back to Lucifer, worry etched all over her face.  Lucifer was only wearing pants, no shirt, so she figured it would be good enough to just tuck him into bed like that. The thought that he would prefer being naked brought up a gurgle of laughter that quickly changed to a sob.  Fighting off tears, she maneuvered him this way and that; the wings were a little hard to navigate around, but she finally got him on his side and laid his big feathery limbs out.  His expression didn’t change, and his eyes stayed blank.

With a big sigh, she slid in between the sheets, fully dressed, to snuggle up next to him.  She touched his chest tentatively, feeling it expand and contract with every breath, which gave her some hope.  His skin was cool to the touch -- nothing like the warm, passionate lover she was used to.  Tears leaked out of her eyes and pooled onto the pillow.

Pulling him into her arms, she whispered, “Come back to me, Lucifer.  Please come back.”


	8. Where No One Can Follow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-huge thank you, thank you, thank you(!!!) to my excellent beta, ScooterThyme, whose sharp eyes and wonderful advice helped tighten this chapter way up. Thank you, you are awesome!

 

 

Lucifer found himself sitting on the beach, with his suit jacket next to him and his shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows.  He had no idea where he was; there were no beaches in Heaven, and almost all of the colors around him were somewhat duller than that of his homeland.  There were hills behind him, the strand was narrow, and the ocean waves were only a few feet high.  There was no one around, which was strange, but he didn’t mind.  He liked the solitude.

The sun was shining, and he basked in its gentle warmth.  For some reason the fallen angel was expecting it to be as hot as Hell, but the sunshine was not that intense.  The sand upon which he sat was comfortably warm; the heat radiated through his trousers.  Some granules had gotten into his shoes -- he could feel the grit between his toes.  Lucifer wrapped his arms around his bent knees and stared out at the only thing with any intensity of color -- the water that was so blue it hurt his eyes.

Seagulls cried overhead and he glanced up at the clear sky above.  No haze anywhere.  He felt like he could see forever -- maybe right up into Heaven, if he squinted.  He blinked in surprise.  What an odd thing to think.  He knew he wasn’t in Heaven, and obviously he wasn’t in Hell... so where was he?  Oh well, no matter.  Sighing, he leaned his head on his forearms and let the sun beat down on him.

There was the sound of footsteps approaching -- the crunch of the sand was unmistakable.  Lucifer didn’t want to look up, though.  He kept his head down, enjoying the sound of the waves breaking against the shore.

Someone sat down next to him.  Content with where he was, he didn’t bother looking up.  He felt a hand touch his back, rubbing it gently.

“Hello, Lucifer.”

The fallen angel looked up at the sound of the voice.

The woman sitting next to him was so indescribably beautiful that she practically glowed.  She wasn’t an angel, though -- he would have known if she was.  A gentle breeze ruffled some of her blonde hair; she tucked a long strand behind her ear and smiled at him.

“Do I know you?” he asked.

Her smile slipped.  “You don’t remember me?” she asked, her voice concerned.  

The fallen angel shook his head.  “Should I?”

The woman looked horrified.  “Do you remember anything?”

Lucifer just stared at her with a blank expression.  

“Nothing?”  The lovely woman’s mouth worked for a moment, as if she couldn’t think of what to say.  “Oh god....  Lucifer, please don’t tell me you remember nothing.  You must remember something....!  What about Trixie?  Our time together?   _ Anything?” _

The fallen angel started feeling anxious.  No....  He couldn’t remember her, and none of her words meant anything to him.  Who was Trixie?  Why was the woman asking about their time together?  It puzzled him, and he tried to concentrate.  When he did, something... something bad started shifting around in his chest.  Pain.  A cold, tight pain.  Self-preservation kicked in, and he began to back away from her in the sand, his face a mask of distress.

“No wait --” the woman called, reaching out to stop him, but he pulled away.  

“I don’t know you --” he said, his voice rising.  He started to rise, as if to bolt, but she suddenly sat back on her heels, with her hands up in a supplicating manner.

“Okay, okay,” she said soothingly.  “It’s okay, Lucifer.  It’s okay.  Please... sit down.  I’m not going to harm you.”

Her gentle voice quieted his nerves, calmed him down.  Giving her a wary glance, he relaxed back into his seated position.

The woman took a deep breath, and gave him a kind smile.  “You don’t remember me,” she said, “but I know you.  We were... friends.”

He looked away, puzzled.  A chill slowly filtered through him, starting at his toes and working its way through his body until it reached his face.  Tipping his head back toward the sun, he hoped he could warm up.

“I miss you,” she said softly.  “You need to come back.”

The fallen angel looked at her, confused.  “What do you mean?”

“You’ve gone where no one can follow,” the woman said.

Lucifer glanced at her with surprise.  “You’re here.”

She shrugged.  “That is true... but you need to come back.”  

His brow furrowed.  He didn’t understand.  The woman reached out and took one of his hands in hers.  Her touch was warm... and it caused the sharp pain in his chest to return, tenfold.  He pulled away, as if burned, and rubbed an area over his heart.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

The fallen angel shook his head.  “My chest... it hurts.”

“Let me see.”  As she reached over and unbuttoned his shirt, he studied her concerned face.  She seemed so familiar, and yet....

“Oh my god,” she gasped.  Following her gaze, he looked down at his chest and saw the cavity wide open, as if he had been dissected.  A blackened, shriveled mass of flesh in the center of it thumped slowly and painfully.  He glanced back at the woman, whose face was a study of distress.  

“Oh, Lucifer,” she breathed.  “What have they done to you?”  She reached out to touch the nearly-dead heart of his, but stopped just shy of it.  Her mouth tightened with determination.  “We are going to fix this.”

Lucifer watched as she unzipped the tunic she was wearing.  Just the thought of seeing her breasts should have shot a flush of excitement through him, but instead it caused a cold chill to course through his body.  When she pulled the metal tab and exposed herself, Lucifer was surprised to see her chest cavity open as well.  Reaching in, she pulled out her heart.

“Here, take mine.  We’ll trade,” she said, holding up the healthy red, beating organ.

“What?!”  Recoiling, Lucifer tried to get up, but she stopped him with a hand on his arm.  

“Trust me, Lucifer.  Please.  I know you don’t remember me, but... you have to trust me.”

_ You have to trust me. _  Speechless, he could only stare at her.  Hadn’t someone said that to him once before...?  Some time ago?  He could almost remember -- but then his heart throbbed in pain.

The blonde woman reached in and gently eased his heart out, trading it for her own.  As soon as she placed the organ inside him, his chest closed up as if it had never been open.  He ran a hand over himself in wonder.  The chill had gone, and he felt warm.  There was no pain.

A quick glance showed him that the woman had placed his heart inside her.  Her face clenched in torment as she zipped up her tunic.  He felt... what did he feel?  Anxiety.  Distress.

“It’s hurting you,” Lucifer said with concern.  “My heart... is hurting you.”

“Only for a little while,” she gasped.  “It will get better.”

“Don’t,” he said, surprising himself.  “Give it back.”

Shaking her head, she gave him a brave smile.  “No, Lucifer.  It’s mine now.”  Her face broke out into a sweat, and she collapsed into his lap.  Her skin was clammy where he touched her.  

Helpless.  He felt helpless and anxious and...  And he didn’t know what else.  His heart hurt, but in a different way than before.  He didn’t know what to do.  Gathering the woman up in his arms, he rocked her on the beach.

_ “‘Lucifer Morningstar’?  Is that, uh... a stage name or something?” _

_ “God-given, I’m afraid.” _

He looked up at the echo of voices.  “Did you hear that?” he asked as he looked around.  The woman in his arms only shivered.

Other voices swirled around in the air around him -- voices that he almost recognized.  Closing his eyes, he concentrated and tried to hear what was being said.  Images flashed in his mind, mostly of the woman.  He remembered... he remembered....

_ “I’m not here for a case.  I’m here for you.” _

_ “Oh.  Really?” _

_ “Yeah.  Thought you could use a friend.” _

“Your name is Chloe,” Lucifer said with wonder.

She looked up at him with pain-glazed eyes.  “You remember my name,” she said with a smile.  “Good....  What else do you remember?”

“We... we used to work together,” he said.  “Didn’t we?”

She nodded, then shuddered as another convulsion racked her slender frame.  He didn’t know what to do.  Tightening his grip on her, he tried to absorb her agony.

_ “In exchange... all I ask is that you protect Chloe....” _

“You need to give me my heart back,” he said desperately.  “It’s hurting you.”

Shaking her head violently, she said, “I told you.... It’s mine.”  Her breaths were coming out in short gasps.  “Oh, they’ve really done a number on you,” she managed to laugh.

Feelings began to flood Lucifer’s entire being as memories flashed in his mind of meeting her in her house, of a lunch, a dinner....  Feelings that he couldn’t identify.  They weighed heavily in his chest, and his heart -- her heart -- filled with warmth.  It made him feel... peculiar.  

“I feel strange,” he said.

“What do you feel?” Chloe asked.

“I... I don’t know.  Warm.  Happy.  Odd.  I don’t think I’ve felt like this before.”

“Oh, you have,” she whispered.  “It’s love.  Can you f-feel it?”

Lucifer cocked his head as he looked down at her.  “I... I think so.”

“I’m... glad,” she whispered.  Her hands suddenly clutched him as she gasped, shaking horribly.  She cried out and then went suddenly limp in his arms.  Panic flooded through him.

“Chloe?  Chloe?!” he yelled as he shook her body.  She couldn’t die.  She just couldn’t!  He would be lost if he lost her again --

_ What?! _

Holding her tightly to him, another deluge of memories and feelings washed over him, drowning him.  He remembered all that they had gone through -- Heaven, Hell -- and all of his love for her.  His love!  He loved her, and she loved him -- and... she had died?  He remembered her bloody shirt.  They told him she had died....

No, no, no.  No.  That couldn’t be right -- she was here in his arms.  They must have all lied.

“Chloe -- please, please open your eyes,” he begged as he caressed her cool face.  “Come on, love.  I remember.  I remember, so please.... Please --”

 

________________________________________

 

“Chloe!”  Lucifer yelled her name as he bolted upright in bed.  Completely disoriented, his eyes darted around the darkened room.  Where the bloody hell was he?  The last he remembered, he had been in his father’s solar, and Sachiel....

He pushed that thought away, looking more carefully around him.  It looked like his bedroom, but he couldn’t recognize it.  He couldn’t think.  All he could feel was overwhelming panic as he remembered his dream of Chloe.  But... she was dead, wasn’t she?  Confusion lit into him as well as despair, and he anxiously rubbed his face with his hand.

Then he realized there was someone lying in bed with him, which made him jump like a scalded cat.  Glancing over, he saw a figure of a woman silhouetted against the moonlight from the window.  It looked like....  Could it be...?

Was he dreaming?  He was almost afraid to move or speak, fearing that she was indeed a figment of his imagination, or a manifestation of his longing.  He slowly reached out and touched her cheek.  It was cool... but real.  

“Chloe,” he breathed, and faster than he could think, he had her in his arms.  Panic filled him as she lay limp in his embrace.  “Chloe!”  He rubbed her back as he desperately tried to get some warmth into her body.  Bloody hell, was she dead?!  No, no, no....  Please no!  “Please, Chloe... wake up, love.  Wake up!”

He didn’t know how long he held her, but finally he felt her stir.  It was just a little movement, but it was enough.  Tears of relief flooded his eyes.  She was alive -- alive!

Her eyelids fluttered, and she finally looked up at him.  “H-hello, Lucifer,” she whispered.  “Welcome home.”

With a shaky hand, she reached out and touched his face.  The feel of her palm against his cheek was like a catalyst, releasing his emotions.  He gathered her tightly to him and wept.

  
  



	9. Planning the Next Move

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super-huge thank you to my excellent beta, ScooterThyme! You have amazing eagle eyes -- thank you for your hard work!

 

 

Lucifer held Chloe in his arms for a long time, until he finally stopped shaking.  Reaching over, he turned on a nearby lamp, filling the room with a soft yellow light.  It hurt his eyes, but he quickly adjusted to it.  He wanted to see her, to make sure she was real.  

“Are you all right?” he asked quietly as she stirred against him.

The detective rubbed her chest, as if in pain.  “I think so.  I can still feel....”

He placed a warm hand over hers and grasped it firmly.  “You need to give me my bloody heart back,” he said.  “I can’t have you hurting --”

She smiled up at him bravely.  “It will get better -- I have enough love to heal it.  Your heart is mine, and mine is yours.  No one will ever get between us, Lucifer.”

Lucifer kissed her then -- a sweet, gentle kiss filled with all the love he felt for her.  Catching her glance, his teary eyes filled with wonder, he said, “They said they killed you.”

“They almost did,” she said with a weak chuckle.  “I’ll tell you about it later.”

His mind was still reeling that Chloe was alive and in his arms.  “Those bloody sods told me you were dead.  I just -- I couldn’t --”

“I know,” she whispered.  “I know.  But I’m here now.”

“But what if you had been killed?  Would you come back?  My bloody family has been horrible to you -- why would you even _want_ to come back?”

“Because you’re here,” she said with a smile.

Her simple statement sent such a wealth of emotions throughout Lucifer that he thought he would shatter from them.  Joy was first, then tenderness, and then... he couldn’t even identify the pesky, wonderful human emotions.  He only knew that he was the luckiest angel in all of Creation.

Taking Chloe’s face in his hands, he kissed her with all the passion and desire he felt -- a long, beautiful kiss that made Chloe’s heart flutter madly in her chest.  It also brought a sharp stab of pain, but she ignored it  She had missed him too badly to want to stop.

He pulled away first, breathing hard, and leaned his forehead to hers.  “I couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you, love.  I just couldn’t.”

“I’ll never leave you, Lucifer.  Never.  You have to believe that.”  She reached up and caressed his stubble-lined cheek.  “Now that I know you -- I will always find you.”

Her words filled Lucifer’s heart with such warmth that he thought it would burst.  Happiness shot through him -- intense joy that made him want to shout out his love for her.  With a self-conscious laugh, he carelessly wiped the last traces of tears away with the back of his hand.  

“Sorry, love -- bloody bad form,” he said.   

“It’s okay, Lucifer,” she whispered against him.  “I’m here.”

Drawing her close, he kissed her passionately as he pulled away the sheet covering her.  Easing the clothes first from her body and then from his, he proceeded to show his lover just how much she meant to him.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

After exhausting Chloe from lovemaking, Lucifer held her as she slept.  A soft smile touched his lips as he glanced down at the woman sprawled on his chest.  How he loved her....  He hoped she would understand when he left to do what he needed to do.

Killing his father was in the forefront of his mind.  It was the only thing he could think of to make things right.  That bastard had almost killed Chloe -- his heart, his soul!  And on top of that, his father had set him up -- again.  He had to be stopped.  

Lucifer rubbed his face in frustration.  He didn’t even know how many angels he had killed when his grief and madness took over -- innocent angels, who had only wanted to get away from his father’s machinations.  Regret filled him.  What had he done?  What the bloody hell had he done?!  Guilt weighed heavily on his mind, tightening his chest and making him feel as if a heavy weight was trying to press him right through the floor, straight into Hell.

He jumped when the woman in his arms muttered, “I can hear you thinking, Lucifer.”

“You’re awake?” he asked as she looked up at him with sleepy eyes -- sleepy, sexy eyes that aroused him so badly that he considered taking her again right then and there.

“Uh huh,” she said groggily as she pulled herself up and snuggled next to him.  “What’s wrong?”

“Just thinking,” he said as he pulled her close to his side.  

“I know.  Like I said, I can hear you thinking.”

He blinked.  “You can read my thoughts?”

She chuckled, becoming more awake.  “Of course not, silly.  But you’re not relaxed, are you?  You’re worrying about something so much that I can practically hear it.  What’s wrong?”

He didn’t want to tell her.  Not yet.  He doubted she would approve, but he hoped she would eventually understand.  Arguing about it now would just make things uncomfortable, so he did what he was best at -- he diverted her attention.

“So what happened to you while I was off in battle?  I was so worried, and then they showed me your bloody shirt....”

So that’s what had happened to her shirt!  Chloe placed a finger on Lucifer’s lips.  “Shh, it’s okay.  I’m alive.  Jehoel and Nuriel held me captive in a house in the desert.  They had another angel with them -- Ambriel.  Someone named Dokiel had sent her there, because he didn’t trust Jehoel.  She took good care of me, but....”

“But?” Lucifer prompted after she went silent.

Sadness shadowed Chloe’s features as she put her head on his chest.  The sound of his heartbeat gave her solace.  “Jehoel and Nuriel came to kill me.  Ambriel tried to stop them, but she was killed.”

“Oh,” Lucifer said softly as he gently tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

“I was able to kill Nuriel, but Jehoel stabbed me.  Ambriel managed to call Rafe before she died.”  She looked up at Lucifer then.  “He saved my life and brought me home.”

The bottom fell out of Lucifer’s stomach as jealousy reared its ugly head.  “Oh bloody hell, _Rafe_ saved you?”

“What?”  Chloe pulled away and propped herself up beside him, suddenly feeling indignant.  “You didn’t want him to save me?  You’d rather I died?!”

“What?  No!  Of course I wanted him to save you!” Lucifer cried.  “It’s just that --“  He broke off.  

The detective eyed him suspiciously.  “What?”

The fallen angel ran a frustrated hand over his face.  “It’s just that... that....”

“What, Lucifer?”

“He saved you, when I couldn’t,” he said in a small voice.  And then, louder: “And now you’ll be falling all over that bloody sod, or him over you --”  Chloe punched him in the arm -- hard.  “Ow!”

“You can be so damned dense sometimes!” she snapped at him.  She grabbed his chin and yanked his head so that he was looking right into her eyes.  “I love _you,_ you idiot!  For crying out loud!  How many times do I have to say it?”

Her words had the immediate effect of quenching the jealousy, but at the same time arousing him to immense proportions.  His expression softened as he reached for her, saying, “You can never say it enough....”

But Chloe was in no mood to capitulate just yet.  “Besides, he not only saved me, but he saved you too!  So chew on that, Mister Morningstar!”

That had Lucifer freezing in his tracks.  “What?”

“Rafe brought you back home,” Chloe said, finally calming down.  “Your father was trying to get you back into Hell.  He saved you from Falling.”

“Oh bloody hell,” Lucifer groaned.  “Are you saying I owe that bloody sod even more...?”

She laughed at his disgusted expression, merriment growing in her eyes.  “Yes you do, so there.”

“Bloody, bloody hell....”  Throwing his head back against the pillow, he stared at the ceiling and wondered how he was ever going to repay the debt.  Chloe snuggling up against him, though, wiped out all thought of Raphael from his head, and they quietly enjoyed the feel of each other for long minutes.  

“But that wasn’t what you were worrying about, was it?” she finally asked, returning to the matter at hand.  Lucifer looked down at her, reflecting how tenacious Chloe could be when she wanted to know something.  It was why she was such a good detective, he supposed.  But he was the Devil, and no one could evade questions better than he could.

“How is your heart?” he asked with concern.

She touched her chest tentatively.  “I’m not sure....”  Giving him a coy smile, she added, “But I think your lovemaking helped.”

“In that case, my dear, let’s make it feel even better....”  He started touching her curves with his warm hands, arousing her.

“Lucifer --”

He cut her off with his mouth over hers, kissing her deeply.  A soft moan escaped her as he pulled her closer, doing things that made her mind go completely blank... but she tried one last time to hold on to her sanity.

“Lucifer, wait.... You can’t --”

“Indeed I can, my dear.”

“That’s not what I meant.  We should talk --”

“Shhh.  Let our bodies do the talking....”

Chloe was lost after that.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

It was still quite early when she awoke.  Chloe was dismayed to find Lucifer gone from her side.  Despite what she had told him, her chest still hurt.  The pain was an odd sort of feeling, like long, sharp thorns wrapped right around her very soul.  It worried her, but she hoped it would stop soon.  She was glad her lover had recovered, but what the hell had they done to him?

The occasional ring of metal clanking against metal distracted her from her thoughts.  Puzzled, she slipped from the bed, pulled on one of Lucifer’s silk shirts from his closet, and made her way toward the sound.

Lucifer was fully dressed at the bar; he had removed the duffle bag filled with Hell-forged weapons from the nearby coat closet.  As she watched, he pulled out weapon after weapon, testing each one for its heft, before setting it down on the counter.

“What are you doing?” she asked.  He spun around, a guilty look on his face.  

“Detective!  You’re awake!” Lucifer said, quickly stepping in front of the array of implements spread out before him, as if to hide them from her view.

Pushing past him, she stared at the weapons, then shot him a killing glance.  “Please don’t tell me you’re planning something stupid,” she snapped.

“Detective, please!  I’d never plan anything stupid,” he protested defensively.

Chloe’s eyes narrowed.  “Reckless, then.”

Lucifer couldn’t hold her gaze.  His eyes shifted away.  “Well, not exactly.”

Fury burned in her.  “Tell me.”

“I....”

“Yes?”

“I....”  He straightened and lifted his chin defiantly.  “I’m going to kill my father.”

Horror couldn’t describe what she felt.  “Lucifer, no.  You are not doing that.”

“I have to.”  His shoulders fell as he looked away.  “Look what he’s done to me -- to you!  And, bloody hell, you don’t know what he made me do.”  He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment; when he opened them again, they brewed with red fire.  “He needs punishment, my dear.”

“Punishment, yes.  Murder?  No.”  Chloe grabbed his arm angrily, turning him to her.  “Lucifer, you are not doing this.  It’s wrong.  I don’t know what he made you do, and I don’t care.  Whatever you did, it was because he manipulated you into doing it.  But this....  This isn’t something anyone’s making you do.  This is going to be your own decision.   _And I will not let you become a murderer._ ”

“What other bloody choice do I have?” he snapped.  “That bastard won’t leave me -- us -- alone!  It’s the only way that we are ever going to get any peace!”  

“So you’re going to let your father truly turn you into a monster?”

“Everyone thinks that anyway, so what does it matter?” he spat.

“It matters to me!” Chloe cried.  “You’re a good man --”

“You don’t know that!” he yelled back.

“I _know,_ damn you!”  Grabbing the lapels of his jacket, she tried to shake some sense into him.  “Lucifer, you are not doing this -- there has to be another way!”

Breaking free of her grip, he took a step back, his eyes burning even brighter red.  “There is no other way!”

For a long moment they stared at each other angrily, before Lucifer squeezed his eyes shut.  He couldn’t stay mad at Chloe for long; it just wasn’t in him.  Struggling to control his rage, he said in a quiet voice, “Please, Detective.  I have to do this.”

“No.”

“Bloody hell, woman, it’s the only choice left to me --”

 _“No.”_  She stared hard at him.  “I refuse to let you do this.”

“I don’t need your bloody permission!” he snarled.  Couldn’t she see he was fighting for their future?  “Murder and mayhem is what I do, because I’m the bloody Devil!  There’s nothing you can do to stop me!”

Hurt flashed across Chloe’s face at his tone, making Lucifer’s chest squeeze with regret.  He had never meant to hurt her.  He had to get away -- to cool off.  Starting to walk past her, he didn’t see the determined glint enter her eyes.

“There is,” she said as she grabbed his arm and swung him toward her.  “I can do this.”  Desperately kissing him with everything she had, she hoped she’d be able to change his mind.  Lucifer was insanely stubborn, but for once -- for once! -- she hoped he would bend.

He tried to pull her arms away, but she clung to him, giving him a deep kiss that stole all thought from his mind.  He couldn’t think when she kissed him like that, damn it!  With shock, he found that instead of escaping her embrace, he was pulling her ever closer, as passion sparked like an inferno between them.  Bloody hell!  He was drowning -- there was no way he could resist her sexual onslaught.  Giving in, he swept her off her feet and took her back to bed.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

“You realize that this changes nothing,” he said later.

Chloe sat up and looked at him, her hair in disarray as she pulled the sheet around her.  “We’ll find a way, Lucifer.  I’ve been thinking....”

Lucifer stared at her, appalled.  “Thinking?!  While we were having sex?!”  Were his angelic charms slipping so badly that he couldn’t even keep her attention while they made love?

Chloe chuckled.  “No, silly -- after.  Look....  I think we should get some advice.”

“Hmph,” he said in a huff, still upset about her not being focused one hundred percent on sex with him.  “On what?  How to keep one’s attention on one’s lover?”

Rolling her eyes, the detective sighed gustily.  “Lucifer....”

“I mean, how can you possibly be thinking of anything else when you have bloody perfection -- me! -- in your arms?”

“Oh my god....” she groaned.

“Don’t bring that bastard up!   He’s the reason why we’re at odds!”

Sighing, Chloe started again.  “Lucifer, listen to me,” she said as she tilted his face toward her.  “I love you.”

It was enough to calm him down.  “I... I....”  His voice petered out as he looked away.  After a long pause, he said in a small, ashamed voice, “I’m sorry about... earlier.”

His apology warmed her heart and gave her strength.  She caressed his cheek before kissing him softly on the lips.

“You’re a good man, Lucifer Morningstar,” she said.  “It’s why I fell in love with you in the first place.  Now please... just... just listen for a moment, will you?

“There’s a reason why I don’t want you to murder your father.  Not only is it wrong, but also when you kill someone, it changes you.  Some part of you dies inside.  I know -- I’ve had to kill because of my job.  I don’t want this to happen to you.”

Lucifer stared at her, stunned at her statement.  She was trying to protect him...?  Him!  When he was trying to protect her!  “But I’ve killed, Detective.  I told you -- you don’t know what that bastard made me do.”

“It’s not the same, Lucifer.  Killing in self defense or because you were manipulated into it is not the same as planned murder.  Trust me.  Please.”

Her warm heart touched him deeply.  “I do trust you, Chloe,” he said.  Gathering Chloe up in his arms, he pressed his cheek against her hair.  “You make me a better man,” he whispered.

“Damn right I do,” she whispered back, a smile in her voice.  “So hear me out, okay?”

He nodded.  “Right.  What do you propose?”

“If we’re going to fight a god, then we need a god’s advice on how to do it.”

Lucifer blinked.  “A god’s advice?”

“Ray.”  Chloe looked at Lucifer then.  “We go talk to Ray.”

 


	10. How to Take Down a God

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-huge thank you! to my excellent beta, ScooterThyme! You totally ROCK!!

 

 

Trixie, Maze and Amenadiel poured out of the elevator just as Lucifer had finished making breakfast.  As soon as she saw her favorite Devil, Trixie broke into a run and barreled into him, giving him a huge hug around the waist.  Lucifer bent down and picked her up, giving her a big hug back.

“I missed you, Lucifer!” she cried as she buried her face in his white silk shirt and broke out into great, ugly, heaving sobs.  A panicked look fell over the fallen angel at the girl’s reaction to him.  He glanced at Chloe for help, but she just looked at him with a gentle smile and tears in her eyes as well!  Bloody hell, what should he do when all the women around him started crying?

“What’s this, child? Why are you crying?” he asked as he stood there helplessly.  He couldn’t put the girl down because she was clinging to his neck, and he had no idea what the hell he was supposed to do.  Amenadiel smirked with amusement and Maze stared with disgust as Lucifer started walking around the apartment and gently bouncing Trixie like she was a baby.  “Right.  Now, tell me what ails you.”

That just made Trixie cry harder.  Lucifer wondered if he was hurting the poor girl in some way.  “Seriously, child, if you keep crying like that, you’re going to make yourself ill.”

She finally managed to stop crying long enough to say, “I missed you so much!  You and Mommy were gone for so long, and then Mommy came back but you didn’t, and when you did you looked like a zombie like on tv, and I got so scared!  I wanted to stay but Mommy wouldn’t let me, and then I had nightmares all night long!”

“Right.  Well, little one, as you can see, I am perfectly fine, so there’s no reason for you to cry.  And no more nightmares either, child -- I’m right here.  I am sorry that I was unable to bring home your mother as I promised, but my brother beat me to it.”   _Damn him_ , added Lucifer silently.

“I really, really missed you,” Trixie said in a watery voice as her sobs finally petered out.

“And I missed you, child.”  He gave her a tight hug that finally brought a smile to the girl’s face.

The Devil set the girl down and said as he took her hand, “Right.  Now, why don’t we get a little brekkie?  I just made some delicious omelettes if you would care for some.”

Trixie squinted up at him.  “Do you have any chocolate cake?”

A giant sigh forced its way out of Lucifer.  The little spawn had no concept of good food.  “I’m sorry, child.  Your mother tossed out the cake this morning -- it was quite old.”

Crestfallen, the girl said, “Oh, okay.  Well, I _guess_ I can have an omelette, then.”

“Right.  Don’t do me any bloody favors,” Lucifer muttered as they walked back into the kitchen.

Eyes bright with unshed tears, Chloe met them there with a big smile on her face.  

“Good to see you up and around, Lucifer,” Maze drawled as she sat down to eat.  “Although I still wish I could decapitate that healer angel.”

“Maze!” Amenadiel hissed before turning to Lucifer.  “She’s just happy to see you.”

“I’m happy to be here.  Can’t keep a good Devil down!” the fallen angel quipped with a laugh.  He looked at his family gathered around the dining table and smiled.  For a little while at least, he was content.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Trixie practically glued herself to Lucifer’s side after breakfast, which strangely did not bother the fallen angel one bit.  The warmth in his chest at the little girl’s devotion made up for any inconvenience he had with her following in his wake.  It did make discussing his dad’s demise a little difficult, though.

“Right.  The detective and I have to go to Memories Photo Lab to talk to the owner there,” he said to Maze and Amenadiel, once they were all seated around the coffee table.  Lucifer sat in his armchair with Trixie in his lap.   He would have preferred Chloe, but... oh well.  

“Why?” Maze asked derisively.  “You gonna take a family portrait or something?”

“Of course not, Maze,” Lucifer responded with a roll of his eyes.  “We need to talk to the owner about taking down dear old Dad.”

“Is he stuck on a wall or something?” Trixie asked.

“Ah... well....”  The fallen angel’s voice trailed off and he sent a “help me” look to the detective.

With a smile, Chloe stood up and beckoned to her daughter.  “Trixie, you’re missing your Saturday morning cartoons.  Why don’t you go watch for a little while, okay?  We have some grown-up things to discuss.”

The little girl looked defiant.  “I’m grown-up!  I can discuss stuff too!”

All the adults grinned at that.  “I know, baby, but not this time, okay?” the detective said, holding out her hand.  Reluctantly, Trixie took her mother’s hand, while muttering, “Next time I get to stay....”

“She’s a handful, that one,” Amenadiel said with a laugh.

“She learns fast,” Maze said proudly, a triumphant grin on her face.  “I’ve been training her well.  Soon she’ll be a better fighter than most of the demons in Hell.”

Catching the last part of the sentence, Chloe cringed and sat down on the couch.

“Right.  Now then, let me catch you all up to date,” Lucifer said, then proceeded to tell them about the rebellion, his father’s involvement in it, and the ultimate demise of the rebel angels.  “Dad’s lost his mind,” he finished.  “He nearly killed the detective, and he’s manipulated me and everyone else for the last time.  He needs to be punished.”

Amenadiel shook his head.  “I can’t believe Father would do such a thing.”

“He’s been manipulating all of us since the beginning of time,” his brother spat.  “It has to stop.”

“I’m all for a little murder and mayhem,” Maze purred with a feral grin.

“But how are you going to do it?” the angel asked.  “You can’t just go and storm Heaven -- look what happened to the rebels, and there were a lot more of them than just us.”

“That’s why we’re going to see Ray,” Chloe said.  “He’s an Old God, and he said that he used to give advice....  He may be able to help.”

Amenadiel looked doubtful.  “I don’t know, Brother....”

Maze’s fist shot out and punched her boyfriend in the face.  “Don’t be a wuss,” she hissed.  “Either you’re with us or against us.”

Rubbing his aching jaw, Amenadiel said, “I’m with you, Maze.  Just... stop punching me, will you?”

“Now or when we’re in bed?” the demon asked with a hot, sexy look in her eyes.

“Okay!” Chloe interrupted as the angel and demon started making goo-goo eyes at each other.  “So why don’t you two go and... uh... finish what you’re apparently about to start, while Lucifer and I go talk to Ray?  We’ll meet you back here later.”

Without a word, the couple rose to their feet in unison and practically dashed for the elevator.  Lucifer watched them with amusement.  “Tell me we aren’t like that, darling,” he said.

“Well, I’m definitely not punching you in bed,” the blonde woman said with a shake of her head.

Turning twinkling eyes to her, the fallen angel left his armchair to take a place next to her on the couch.  “Oh really? But it might be oh, so satisfying,” he whispered as he started nuzzling her neck.  Chloe elbowed him very hard in his ribs, making him cry out in pain.

“Satisfied?” she asked with a smirk.  The smug expression fell off her face when she saw him look at her with bright eyes and a wicked grin.  “Oh wait, Lucifer, I didn’t mean --”

“Well, my dear, I didn’t know you had it in you.”  He suddenly pulled her closer, lowering her onto the couch while pinning her down with his body so that she couldn’t put up any resistance.  He looked deep into her merry eyes before nibbling on her ear and whispering, “Maybe we could expand on this a little....  Use those handcuffs of yours...?”

“Trixie’s in the other room!” Chloe cried.  

Lucifer’s head fell onto her shoulder.  “Right.  Bloody hell, woman.  You’re killing me.”

Her laughter fell around him like rain, making him smile.  Very reluctantly, he let her up and released her.  

“Business before pleasure, Lucifer,” she said with a grin.  “Let’s go see Ray.”

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

“Detective Decker!  Mister Morningstar!  Come in, come in!” said Ray Kamiya.  The old man turned to the little girl with them.  “And you must be Trixie.”

“Hi,” Trixie said with a grin.  

“I haven’t seen you since you were born,” he said.  “Come in!”

After welcoming the family into Memories Photo Lab, the small Asian man put up a sign in the front window that said “will return in an hour” and ushered them into the back room.  Lucifer looked around with interest.  The photos in the back room just fascinated him.  He could almost see them moving, if he could just get past the strange veil over them....  Shaking his head, he tore his attention away and focused on the occupants in the room.

After sitting Trixie down with some books at a small table out of earshot, the photo lab owner beckoned the adults to sit down at the larger table.

“I just made some tea,” the old man said as they sat.  Chloe laughed.  

“You always seem to know when we’re coming,” she said.

He winked at her.  “One of the benefits of being a Keeper of Memories -- I keep track of past, present and future memories, including my own.”

That got Lucifer’s attention.  “You know the bloody future?”

Ray laughed.  “Not quite, but I do have records of memories.  Many of them are from the future. I’m not allowed to disclose them, of course -- privacy issues and such.  You know, all that bureaucracy that comes with this job.  But my own memories... well, I can do whatever I want with them, can I not?”  He leaned forward after passing out the hot tea he had made, looking at Lucifer closely.

“It seems you’ve had a rough bout with some memories of your own,” he said with narrowed eyes.

The fallen angel shifted uncomfortably in his chair.  “My sister....  She’s bloody good at wiping out thoughts and such.”

Ray frowned, then shifted his gaze to Chloe, regarding her carefully for many long minutes.  “You need to be more careful, Detective,” he finally said.  “You no longer have all your powers -- you have to remember that.”

Unable to hold the old man’s gaze, Chloe said nothing, only rubbed a spot over her heart absently.  Lucifer caught sight of the movement, and frowned.

After another long pause, the shopkeeper said, “Well, what can I do for you?”

“Ray, we came for some advice,” Chloe said.

The old man’s face lit up.  “Advice!  No one’s come to me for advice in many a year!  Ask away, ask away.”

“It’s dear old Dad,” the fallen angel said, after sipping his tea.  “He won’t leave me or my family alone.  The cruel bastard keeps threatening them, and manipulating me into doing... awful things.  How can we make him stop?”

Ray’s eyes sparkled with mischief.  “Ah, your father.  He’s quite the strategist, isn’t he?”

Lucifer’s face darkened.  “The bloody best.”

“You have to beat him at his own game,” Ray said with a grin.  

Lucifer rolled his eyes and threw up his hands.  “Right, like it’s _that_ bloody simple.  Let’s just beat him at his own game.  And why not unmake the whole bloody universe, while we’re at it?”

Ray looked at Chloe.  “Is he always this sarcastic?”

The detective gave a sympathetic smile and chuckled.  “Oh this is nothing.  You should see him when he really gets going.”  She turned to the tall man.   “Come on, Lucifer, let’s hear him out,” she encouraged.

“Fine, fine,” he grumbled.  “So, Ray, how do we beat the master champion chess player?”

“Well, the way I see it, your father has one thing going against him.”

“Which is?”

“Hubris.”

Lucifer’s eyebrows shot up.  “Hubris?”

“Yes.  Right now he’s beaten the rebels, hasn’t he?”  The old man’s eyes were sparkling, which surprised Lucifer.  If he didn’t know better, he would swear Ray was getting immense joy out of plotting Dad’s downfall.  He expected the lab owner to start rubbing his hands together with glee in a moment.  

“Yes....”

“And you too.  He thinks you’ve Fallen, hasn’t he?”

“That is true.”

“And he thinks Detective Decker is completely out of the picture.  So here’s the thing.  His guard is down.  He’s celebrating.  There’s no one to stop him, or so he thinks.”  Ray leaned forward.  “Attack him now, and you can beat him.  Hit him hard and fast.  He won’t even know what hit him.”

“But... but he’s surrounded by angels,” Lucifer said.  “He’s well protected --”

“No.  Not if you attack him now.”  The old man grinned.  “You don’t need a lot of troops -- you just need the right ones.”

“Bloody hell, Ray, I have no troops.  I can’t even get the bloody Hellmouth open.”  Pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger, the fallen angel leaned back in his chair in frustration.

“It seems to me you have someone who can pull whoever she wants out of Hell,” Ray said, sliding a glance over to Chloe.

That had Lucifer sitting up, his eyes wide.  “Bloody hell, you’re right!”  For the first time he felt a ray of hope.  

Chloe looked at the both of them.  “Wait a minute, I don’t know if --”

“You can do it, Detective!” Lucifer crowed happily.  “You’ve gotten me out of Hell a number of times!  We can go down together and I can tell you who to pull out!”

“But how will you get them back down again?” she asked worriedly.

“A deal.  Make a deal,” Ray said.  “A binding one.”  He looked at Lucifer with a grin.  “The Devil is good at that, isn’t he?”

“Absolutely!”  Lucifer stood up, excitement radiating from him.  “Thank you, Ray.  You’re the best!”

Before the old man could say anything more, the fallen angel had grabbed Trixie and run out of the room toward the front door.  

“But... I hadn’t finished yet....”  Ray said, then shook his head.  “That one’s too reckless.  He’s going to get himself killed.”

“I’m sorry, Ray,” Chloe said.  “Lucifer is like that, unfortunately.  Thank you for your help, though.”

“Wait,” he said as she got up to leave.  After scribbling something down on a piece of paper, he pressed it into her hand and said, “Here’s someone who can give you some cover up there.  Tell him I sent you.”

“Detective!” Lucifer yelled from the front room.

“I better go.  Thank you.”  She turned to leave, but Ray stopped her with a hand on her arm.

“Detective Decker, you have to tend to that heart of yours,” he said, worry etched on his wrinkled face.

She blinked.  “What?”

“Don’t leave it too long.  It’s too dangerous.  You need --”

_“Detective!”_

“Later Ray,” Chloe said, brushing him off and shaking his hand.  “I’ll talk to you later about this.”   Before he could say another word, she dashed out to meet Lucifer.  The fallen angel led her out to the car, then noticed the expression on her face.

“Detective, are you unwell?  You look pale,” he said worriedly.

The blonde woman laughed, although it sounded shaky to her ears.  “It’s nothing.  Ray said we should meet this person.”  She showed Lucifer the slip of paper.  He entered the address into the GPS, and they took off.


	11. Another Ally

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-huge thank you to my stupendous beta, ScooterThyme, who always makes my work so so SO much better! Thank you!!

 

 

The GPS led them to a small, unassuming house in the San Gabriel Valley -- a one-story affair built in the 1950’s, in the midst of a whole bunch of houses that looked somewhat similar.  Lucifer bounded up the stairs to the front porch and knocked on the door as Chloe and Trixie slowly followed.

After a few moments, a good-looking man in his fifties with salt and pepper hair opened the door.  He took one look at the fallen angel, said, “I don’t talk to your kind,” and slammed the door.

Shocked, Lucifer stood there with his mouth open before glancing at his partner, who was climbing the short flight of stairs with her daughter.  “Bloody hell, can you believe that?” he cried, before a hard look came into his eyes.  He banged on the door again, harder.

The door whipped open again.  “I told you, I don’t talk to your kind!” the older man snarled.  Then he caught a glimpse the blonde woman with her little girl.  Giving Chloe a considering look, he said, “But you....  I’ll talk to you.”

“I’m Chloe Decker,” Chloe said, “This is Lucifer Morningstar, and my daughter, Trixie.  Ray Kamiya sent us.  He said you could help us.”

The man’s eyebrows rose at Lucifer’s name, then his eyes narrowed.  “Well, I’ll be damned.  I’m Hal GeWitter.  Come in,” he said as he opened the door wide to allow them access.  Chloe was surprised at how spartan the furnishings were inside the house.  “How is the old badger?” he asked over his shoulder as they followed him to the living room and sat down on the couches there.

“Ray?  He’s well.”

The man studied Trixie, then Lucifer.  “Doesn’t take after her old man...?” he asked the blonde woman.

“I’m not her father,” the fallen angel said.  Hal’s eyebrows went up at that.  

“This is getting more and more interesting.”

“Why?” Lucifer asked.

Hal ignored the fallen angel and addressed Chloe.  “You must know who you are if you’ve met him.  Does your little one?”

“She knows about Lucifer, not about....”

Trixie looked up at that.  “Lucifer’s an angel,” she said proudly as she took the tall man’s hand in hers.  Lucifer gave her hand a squeeze and smiled smugly at the man.

“Hmph, like that’s so great,” the older man said derisively, which caused Lucifer’s smile to slide off his face and be replaced by an irritated frown.

“Look, do you think you can help us?  Ray said you can give us some cover,” Chloe said.

“Depends on what you’re planning.”

The detective turned to her daughter.  “Trixie, honey, can you --”

“I know, I know, more grown-up stuff,” she said with a huff.  Addressing Hal, she asked, “Do you have a tv?  And maybe some chocolate cake?”

“No cake, but the tv’s in the family room.”  He left with the girl and shortly thereafter returned to the couple on the couch.  “Now what do you need me for?”

“Right.  We’re planning on storming Heaven,” Lucifer said.  

Hal started laughing, a big, boisterous laugh, like he thought he had heard the funniest joke in the world.  Pausing, his eyes went from Lucifer to Chloe, and then he started laughing again.  Tears welled in his eyes from laughing so hard.  The couple just stared at him like he had lost his mind.

“Oh, man, storming Heaven?  Just like that?”  That kicked off a whole new round of laughter.

“Listen, you bloody sod, we’re serious.”

Hal stopped laughing and said, “Really?  You’re serious?  And what does your father say about this?”

Annoyance narrowed Lucifer’s eyes.  “We’re planning on punishing the bastard.”  He turned to Chloe.  “Right.  Look, Detective, we don’t need this sod.  He’s obviously not going to help us.”

“I didn’t say that,” Hal interrupted.  “I’ll help Chloe, and if you’re punishing your dad, then count me in.”

The fallen angel looked at the older man with suspicion.  “Why?”

Hal suddenly leaned toward them, his face full of wrath.  “Because he kicked us off this plane.  Others may have forgiven him, but not me.”

“Well... I think I’m going to like you,” Lucifer said with surprise.  

“Don’t be insulting.”  The older man turned to Chloe.  “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again, Compassion.”  

She gawked at him.  “You know who I am?”

Hal shrugged.  “Hard not to when you’re with....” He made a dismissive motion with his hand at Lucifer.  “...that.”

Sputtering, the fallen angel protested, “I beg your pardon, I am more than a... a... ‘that’!  I’m the bloody Devil!”

“Yeah, I know.  Can’t figure out why the hell she fell in love with you, but there’s no accounting for taste.”

Lucifer stood up at that, rage in his face; Hal stood up as well, spoiling for a fight.  Getting between them, Chloe pushed them both back down onto their respective couches.  “There’s a child in the house,” she reminded them.

“Hmph!” they both said at the same time, turning away from each other.  Chloe rolled her eyes.  Sometimes men were so incredibly immature!

“Can you tell me which god are you?” asked the detective.  “I’m sorry, but I don’t remember anything.”

“The God of Hot Air,” muttered Lucifer under his breath, “because he’s certainly full of it.”

“Storm,” Hal said, giving the other man the evil eye.  “When I was a god I could have destroyed you with a wave of my hand, little winged man.”

“Well, you’re not a god anymore, are you?” taunted Lucifer.  

“I still have enough power to show you who’s --”

“Enough!” Chloe yelled at them both.  “Shut up.   _Both of you._ ”  She turned to the storm god.  “Ray said you can provide us with cover when we attack Heaven.  Can you?”

Hal nodded.  “Provided you can get me up there.  My power is greatly reduced, but I can still pull up a nice, thick fog.  Maybe a good storm or two.”

“It never rains in Heaven,” said Lucifer.  “Dear old Dad will know something’s up.”

“Once you’re fighting, will it really matter?  And your stupid brethren probably don’t know how to fight in bad weather.”

The fallen angel had to admit, the older man had a point.  The angels would be at a terrible disadvantage.

“I can get you up there, I think....” Chloe said.   _I hope,_ she added silently.

“No.  Bloody hell, Detective, I don’t want you around the fighting,” Lucifer objected.  “It will be dangerous --”

Facing her lover, she said firmly, “I’m going, Lucifer, whether you like it or not.  You’ll need me.”

“But --”

“How else are you going to get Hal up there?  He’s human -- sort of.  He can’t make the trip unless he comes with me.”  Chloe glanced at the older man.  “Unless you can travel up there...?”

He shook his head.  “Nope.  Can’t travel the planes.”

Turning back to Lucifer, Chloe said, “There, you see?  You need me.”

His expression clouded over with worry.  “I just don’t want anything to happen to you.”

She cradled his cheek with her hand gently.  “It won’t,” she said gently, then kissed him.  A sharp spasm of pain clutched at her heart and she gasped a bit, which Lucifer mistook for desire.  She didn’t correct him.   “I’ll be fine.”

Hal watched them thoughtfully, then shook his head.  “You left a lot of broken hearts when you left, Compassion.”

Lucifer looked sharply at the other man.  “What?”

“Are you kidding me?  Everyone was in love with Compassion.  Who wouldn’t be?”  He caught Chloe’s eye as jealousy started brewing in Lucifer.  “Fire and War were still mourning you when I left.... but I guess you found your other half.  I won’t say better half, but... I am happy for you.”

Shooting the storm god a smile, she said, “Thank you.  And thank you for helping us.  We’ll be in touch.”

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

They returned to the apartment to find Dan, of all people, waiting for them.  An sense of dread overcame Chloe as she looked at her soon-to-be ex-husband.  Before he could open his mouth, she attacked.

“Why haven’t you signed the divorce papers yet, Dan?”

“Chloe, look.  I’m not going to --”

“You shouldn’t be in my bloody flat, Detective Douche,” Lucifer interrupted as he started guiding Trixie toward the guest bedroom.  “You weren’t invited.”

“Yeah, well, I gotta get my family away from you,” the man snapped back, then vented his spleen on Chloe.  “For god’s sake, Chloe -- really?  Leaving our daughter with a bartender and her boyfriend while you and this... this playboy go off and live it up somewhere?  Is that any way to raise our daughter?  And how can you even think of having her live above a nightclub?!”

“Go to the spare room, child, and shut the door,” Lucifer whispered to Trixie.  After the girl had disappeared, he returned to face the other man.  “There is nothing wrong with this flat -- it’s bloody respectable, until people like you come and muck it up.”

“People like me?”  Dan walked right up to Lucifer and got in his face.  “Look, buddy, I’m not the one who sleeps around with twenty thousand women.  I’m not the one who has absolutely no past prior to five years ago.  I’m not the one with suspiciously clean books for a nightclub that obviously makes far more than your books say!”  He turned to Chloe.  “You know as well as I do that something’s not right here.  How can you be with this guy?”

Lucifer grabbed Dan’s jacket and pulled him close.  “She loves me, you bloody sod.   _Me_ \--  Lucifer bloody Morningstar!  Now when are you going to get that through your bloody head?”

Without warning, the man slammed a punch in the fallen angel’s liver; as Lucifer went down he followed it up with a hard blow to the kidney.  The tall man saw red as he scrambled to his feet, pain shooting through his organs.  Bloody hell, how dare the douche strike him!  Panting hard, he swung at Dan, catching him across the face and nearly knocking him out.  

Chloe ran up to the two of them, trying to break up the fight.  “Stop it, goddamn it!  Stop it, both of you!”

When Lucifer paused, Dan tackled him to the floor and got in a couple of quick punches across the face.  Chloe managed to pull Dan backwards, off of Lucifer.  They all fell in a giant heap of arms and legs.  Finally, the fallen angel pulled himself out of the dogpile, his fist tightly gripping the other man’s shirt.  

Bringing Dan’s face very close to his, Lucifer growled in a guttural voice, “Listen, you bloody pillock.  The detective and her child are mine.   _Mine._  If you ever come near them again, I will punish you.  Do you understand?”  He suddenly smiled, looking as devilish as his name.  “And believe me, Detective Douche, when I punish you, I will relish every second.”  Speechless from the fear suddenly overwhelming him, the other man could only nod.  Lucifer tossed him across the room.  “Now get out,” he snarled.

Chloe walked into his arms after Dan left.  “I don’t think he’s going to stop, Lucifer.”

“Then I’ll enjoy punishing him,” the tall man said with a feral grin, still glaring at the closed elevator doors.

Frowning, she said, “And get yourself arrested?  No way.  You stay away from him.”

Lucifer looked at her indignantly.  “Detective, you can’t be serious...!”

“Promise me, Lucifer.  Stay away from him.”

“Very well,” he muttered disgustedly.  “I give you my word.  I’ll stay away from the douche.”   _But if_ he _comes near_ me, _then all bets are off,_ he mentally added.

Chloe suddenly let out a breath and relaxed.  Smiling up at her lover, she said, “Thank you.”  She led him over to the couch and sat him down, taking a place beside him.  “Now then, who are we planning on bringing up from Hell?”

Thinking hard for a moment, the Devil said, “Paimon, one of the Demon Kings.  He’s the most loyal to me, and he has 100 legions that he can summon, once he’s out of Hell.  That should be enough.  We have that bloody storm god for cover, and I don’t want a full-on war -- there’s been enough death up there already.”

“Will you be able to get him back into Hell, with all his men?”

“I think so.  The opportunity to wage war in Heaven will be too great a temptation to resist.  He’ll agree to go back afterwards, I’m sure of it.”  Without warning, Lucifer grabbed Chloe and laid her down on the couch, with his body covering hers and his hands pinning hers beside her head.  She chuckled as he smiled devilishly down at her.  “By the way, my dear, it seems to me that now’s a perfect time to resume what we started this morning.”  He bent down and kissed her deeply.

She gave a sharp cry, but it didn’t sound passionate to Lucifer’s ears.  Pulling back, he saw her face contorted in... pain?  Suddenly releasing her, he sprang to his feet.  “Am I hurting you?” he asked, panicked.

Shaking her head, her face still in a grimace, she rubbed an area over her heart.  “No... No, Lucifer.  I’m fine.”

Gazing at her with eyes full of worry, he sat down on the couch beside her.  “You’re in pain.  It’s from --”

“No,” she interrupted.  “No, it’s nothing.”  She reached for him, but he avoided her hands.  

“Bloody hell, it’s not nothing!”

“It is!” Chloe insisted.  Pulling herself up so that she sat beside him, she took Lucifer’s face in her hands and kissed him.  “There, you see?” she said, smiling.  “Nothing.  It’s nothing, Lucifer.”

The Devil stared at her doubtfully, for her eyes still reflected clouds of pain.  “Detective, you can’t --”

She cut him off with a deep kiss that drove every single sane thought out of his head.  When he came back to himself, he was lying down with her on top of him.  How the bloody hell did that happen?!

“You need me,” she whispered as she planted kisses along his jaw.  “You need me tonight when we go get Paimon and fight your father.”

“No.... Detective, you can’t --”

“I can,” she whispered as she kissed him again and again, until he was ready to agree to anything she said.

“Bloody hell, woman, I can’t think when you do this....”

She laughed softly.  “I know.”

Trixie came running out of her room then, asking if her father had left.  Moving faster than either of them thought possible, the two adults hurriedly righted themselves and their clothing before the little girl came upon them.


	12. Preparations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super big thank you to my excellent beta, ScooterThyme! You're the best of the best!!

 

 

It was hard leaving Trixie with Chloe’s mother, but they knew it had to be done.  Neither Chloe nor Lucifer wanted her to be around when Paimon came around.  The little girl had shown her displeasure by crossing her arms and refusing to talk the entire way to Chloe’s house.  Sitting in the back seat with her during the ride, Lucifer was slowly but surely able to convince her it was for the best.

“Listen, child, I do not want you around my demon king.  He’s not used to little children, and he can be... a little intense,” the fallen angel told Trixie as Chloe pulled the car up in front of the house.

“I want to stay with you!” Trixie cried, big tears in her eyes.

“I know, child, and I appreciate that, but we can’t have you in danger.  Your mother and I are going to be doing some dangerous things tonight, and we want you safe.”

“But I can help!”

“You can help us by being safe,” Chloe chimed in, turning to look at the pair in the back seat.  “If you’re with us, we’ll be worried you’ll be hurt.”

“Don’t worry, little one.  Your mother and I will be back to pick you up tomorrow morning.”

She looked up at him then.  “Do you promise?”

Lucifer couldn’t give his word, for he wasn’t sure how the siege was going to go.  Chloe was the one who said, “If all goes well, monkey, we’ll be here tomorrow morning.  Okay?”

Trixie bobbed her head once and got out of the car.  Just then Penelope came running out of the house.  “How’s my favorite grandchild?” she called out as she intercepted the little girl.

“Hi, Nana,” Trixie said, giving her an unenthusiastic hug.

“I have some chocolate cake for you inside,” the older woman said as she glanced at Chloe and Lucifer getting out of the car.  “Say your goodbyes now.”

The little girl gave a big hug to each of them along with a teary, “Goodbye!” before rushing inside.  Penelope watched her go before turning to the two adults.

“Well, I can’t say I’m very pleased about how you’ve been treating Trixie,” the older woman said to Chloe.  “Dan came by and said that you had left her with a bartender, of all people, for over a week!”

Lucifer rolled his eyes in frustration as Chloe said, “Yes, well, Dan doesn’t know everything, Mom.”

“He’s a good man, Chloe.  Much more stable than....”  Giving a pointed look at Lucifer, she paused dramatically before saying, “Look, I know you and Dan are having your troubles, but really, he’s a good man.  I know, after seeing how he was with you after your accident.  Come on, pumpkin, make the right choice.  Trixie needs her dad.”

“Penelope, she doesn’t need that bloody sod,” Lucifer interjected.

“I disagree, Lucifer,” the older woman said.  “A child needs her dad -- her _real_ dad.”

That shouldn’t have caused Lucifer any pain -- and yet it did.  The same amount of pain he had felt when Malcolm shot him seized his heart.  He felt Chloe’s hand curl around his and give it a reassuring squeeze.

“I disagree, Mom,” Chloe said.  “Lucifer would make a far better dad than Dan.”

Happiness coursed through the fallen angel, making him stand a little taller with his chest out.  Smiling smugly, he exchanged a glance with Chloe before looking at Penelope.

“I know I may not seem ideal for your daughter, Penelope, but really, what is it you desire for your daughter?”  Penelope stared at him as Lucifer turned on the charm.  “You must admit I do have some fine qualities....”

“Well... yes, I suppose so, but I want....”

“Yes?”  The fallen angel started to smile as Chloe hit him in the arm, trying to get him to stop.

“Lucifer...” she warned.

“I really want a good, stable man for Chloe so that she will be happy,” the older woman said.

“Well, I’m the epitome of stable, my good woman.  Good, steady job, good income... and Chloe will be happy, I assure you.”

“But I want....”

“Yes?”

“I want Dan to be my son-in-law.”

Lucifer was taken aback.  “Oh,” he said, disappointed.  Chloe shot him an annoyed look and pushed him aside.

“I’m divorcing Dan, Mom, so you might as well get used to the idea,” she said.  “Lucifer’s the only man for me now.”

Penelope shook her head.  “Oh pumpkin, I hope you know what you’re doing....” she said in a tone that obviously said that she didn’t think Chloe did.

“I do Mom.  Thank you for looking after Trixie.  We’ll be back tomorrow morning.”  Before Penelope could say anything more, Chloe pulled Lucifer back to the car and they both got in.  Waving goodbye, they took off.

There was silence in the car as Chloe drove back.  Gazing at her carefully, Lucifer could see how upset she was.  It was in the way she held the steering wheel, and her annoyed glances in the rear view mirror.  He felt... How did he feel?  Unsettled.  Concerned.  Finally, he spoke.

“Are you all right, Detective?”

Chloe shrugged as she drove.  “Mom drives me up the wall sometimes.  I wish she’d let go of this idea that Dan and I are getting back together.”

“Yes, well, bloody parents do have a way of interfering their children’s lives, don’t they?”

The detective glanced at him then, to see the bitter look on the fallen angel’s face as he studied the road ahead.  Feeling a little guilty about complaining when his problems were so much worse, she said, “This must seem like small potatoes to you.”

Surprised by her words, he turned to her.  “On the contrary, my dear, anything that concerns you is of the highest importance to me.”

Without taking her eyes off the road, she reached out and caressed his cheek with surprising accuracy.  Smiling, she said, “You’re really sweet, Lucifer.  I’m so glad I have you.”

That made everything better.  The rest of the drive was made in companionable silence.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Having called Hal before they dropped off Trixie, the storm god arrived at Lucifer’s flat just after they did.  The older man looked unimpressed as they went up in the elevator together, which annoyed Lucifer to no end.  When the doors opened, they were met by Amenadiel and Maze;  the fallen angel made the introductions before Chloe called him over.

“Can I talk to you for a moment?”

Puzzled, Lucifer said, “Of course,” and followed her to the spare bedroom.  After closing the door behind him, he asked, “Is everything all right?”

She paced in front of him for a moment, before turning to him with tumultuous eyes  “I’m not sure....”

Cocking his head, he approached her with a frown.  “What is it?”

Worry crossed her face as she said, “I’m not sure if I can do this.  I mean -- I want to, but....”

His brow furrowed as he tried to follow what she was saying.  “What are you unsure about?”

“Lucifer, the only times I’ve been able to travel to Heaven or Hell have been when I was sleeping, and sometimes it doesn’t even work.  I’ve only been able to heal you when I’m asleep.  I don’t know how to do any of that when I’m awake.”

Ah.  She was nervous.  “You’ll be fine,” he reassured her, “although I would much rather you weren’t anywhere near the fighting.”

“No, I need to be there,” she insisted.  “I just don’t know how --”

Pulling her into his arms, he rubbed her back and smiled.  “Relax, my dear Detective.  Just relax.  You will be fine.”  Tipping her head up, he looked deep into her eyes.  “I believe in you.”

Warmth spread through Chloe at Lucifer’s words, and she reached up and gave him one of those passionate kisses that sparked so much fire in him that he couldn’t tell up from down.  She pulled away much too soon, leaving him wanting.  

“Okay.  You go and keep everyone company.  I’ll... I’ll be there in a moment.  I’ll just try to relax for a bit.”

Lucifer cocked his head and grinned.  “I can help you with that,” he said as he reached for her again.

Chuckling, Chloe pushed him out the door and shut it in his face.  Sighing, the fallen angel walked back out to the living room.  Taking his customary place in his armchair, he sat across from the angel, the demon and the storm god sitting on the couch.

Amenadiel looked at Hal with interest as he tried to get to know the older man better.  “So you’re an Old God?  A storm god?”

“That’s right....  Not that any of you would know what constitutes a good storm.  Really, the messes I have to clean up for you guys,”  Hal snapped.   The angel looked at him doubtfully, which irritated the older man.  “What, don’t believe me?”

“No, not really.”

“Hmph.”  A tiny storm cloud suddenly appeared inside the flat over Amenadiel’s head and dumped water on his head before disappearing.  The angel let out a cry of surprise; Lucifer chuckled as Hal said, “Believe me now?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Amenadiel said as he shook off the cold water.  “So then why are you here and not on your plane, or whatever?”

“Oh, my sister kicked me out,” he answered, shrugging.  The storm god wasn’t inclined to get to know any of them better, so he kept his answers short.  

Lucifer lifted an eyebrow.  “Your sister?  Do tell.”

Hal shot the Devil a dark look.  “She’s the equivalent of your dad.”

“You’re ruled by a woman?  Oh, I like this,” Maze said with a grin.

“So why did she kick you out?” asked her boyfriend.

“I was an ass.”

Amenadiel stared at Hal for a moment before breaking out into a laughing fit.  Both Lucifer and Hal looked like him like he was crazy.  For long moments the angel couldn’t catch his breath, but finally was able to say, “You’re Lucifer!”

“What?!” Hal said indignantly.

“I beg your pardon!” sputtered Lucifer.

“You both got kicked out of your respective homes by the ruling god and ended up on Earth because you’re both asses!”  Amenadiel dissolved into another round of laughter.  Even Maze joined in.

Hal and Lucifer looked at each other with horror, then quickly looked away.

“No,” the storm god said, shaking his head.  “No, no, no.”

“Absolutely not,” the Devil cried.

“I feel sick,” both men said at the same time, making the angel and demon chuckle.

“So what was your name?  You know, your real name before you came here?” Amenadiel asked.

“Susa-no-o no Mikoto,” Hal said proudly.  The angel started laughing even harder, which annoyed the storm god.  “What?”

“Luci… and Sue!  You both have girl’s names -- By Heavenly Father, you really _are_ both the same!”

Hal looked like he was going to have a conniption.  With fierce, angry eyes, he turned to the fallen angel.  “I’m going to kill him.”

“Splendid!  I’ll join you,” Lucifer said with red eyes and a wicked grin.  Both men rose to their feet and started stalking the chuckling angel, who scrambled to his feet and began backing up.  Looking at both men and then her boyfriend, Maze’s face lit up with glee.

“Are we playing ‘beat up Amenadiel’?  I want to play!”

“Aww, come on, guys, it’s all in fun....” said Amenadiel.  Just as the three were about to start pummeling the hapless angel, Chloe walked into the room.

“What are you doing?”

All four looked at the woman: one with relief, the other three with disappointment.

Turning to his lover, Lucifer said with a grin, “We were just about to beat up Amenadiel.”

Chloe immediately rolled her eyes and got in between them and the angel.  “Oh for the love of -- can’t I leave you guys alone for even one minute?”

“He had it coming,” Hal growled.

“Shut up and sit down,” the detective barked.  “All of you.”  Hands on her hips, she addressed the supernatural beings in front of her.  “Now, Lucifer and I are going into the other room to get Paimon.  I don’t think we’ll be long.  Do you think you three can stay out of trouble in the meantime?”

“He started it,” Hal said, pointing at the angel.

Amenadiel went on the defensive.  “I was just saying --”

“I don’t want to hear it,” Chloe said.  “Sit, all of you.  And _stay._ ”

“Bossy,” Hal muttered.  

“You don’t know the half of it,” Maze muttered.

“I kind of like it,” the older man said with a crooked grin, which had Lucifer going on high alert.  

Grabbing a fistful of the storm god’s shirt, he snarled, “She’s mine.”

Getting a rise out of Lucifer made Hal smirk.  “Afraid I might steal her away from you, little winged man?”

Lucifer started to draw back a fist to punch the smug god, when Chloe dragged him away.  “Children,” she groused as she led Lucifer to the spare bedroom.  “I’m surrounded by children....”

“You sure you’re not going to go have sex instead?” Maze called after them.  

The fallen angel only paused long enough to leer at the three of them and say, “It _is_ one of the benefits of being a lucky Devil....”

Furious, Chloe slapped him when they got into the spare bedroom.  Wincing at the pain, Lucifer rubbed his cheek.  He liked the thrill it gave him, but....  “Bloody hell, what was that for?”

“For you being an ass.  Now lie down next to me,” she ordered.

“Oh, so we _are_ going to have sex?” he asked hopefully.  Chloe rolled her eyes at him as she lay down, fully dressed, beside him.  

“Hold me and help me sleep.  We’re going to Hell.”

Disappointed -- but only a little -- and content to have such a spitfire of a woman beside him, Lucifer wrapped his arms around her with a happy smile on his face.  In a matter of minutes, Chloe fell asleep.

 


	13. Plan of Attack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-huge thank you to my most excellent beta, ScooterThyme! You make my work shine -- thank you!

 

 

Paimon was not what Chloe was expecting.

Maybe she had been watching too much television, but she expected some large, ugly beast in a cage somewhere in Hell... but this demon was nothing like that.  He was actually a very good looking man with an effeminate face riding a camel through the halls of Hell, which, in and of itself, was odd.  But then again, this _was_ Hell....

As soon as he spotted Lucifer, he dismounted and went down on one knee.  “My lord!  I heard you had left Hell.”

“I did, my good demon, I did,” the Devil said as he clasped the man on the shoulder, bidding him to rise.  “It looks like you have everything under control here.”

The demon shrugged.  “It’s not the same without you, my lord.  There is unrest among the other kings, but the angel Amenadiel keeps us in check.”

A laugh escaped Lucifer.  “Bloody hell, there is always unrest.  Nothing ever changes in Hell.”  As the demon turned curious eyes to Chloe, the fallen angel beckoned her forward.  “This is my queen, Paimon.  Treat her with respect.”

The demon’s eyes grew wide.  “My lady,” he greeted with a low bow.  “I did not think my lord would ever find anyone suitable.  Tell me, what type of demon are you?”

“She’s not a demon, Paimon.  She’s a goddess.”

Chloe could feel herself blushing at her lover’s proud proclamation and the demon’s surprised expression.  Paimon gaped at her and said, “A... goddess?  But....”

Waving a dismissive hand over Paimon’s shock, Lucifer got to the matter at hand.  “But that’s not why we’re here.  I wanted to discuss something with you.”

“Of course, my lord.”

“How would you like to storm Heaven?”  His eyes glinted with red fire as he smiled widely.

Paimon’s face suddenly split into a vicious grin, revealing very sharp teeth. “I would very much appreciate the opportunity, my lord.”

“There are conditions, of course.”

The demon’s face fell.  “Oh.  And they are?”

“Right.  You and your legions will return back here after I dismiss you. You may injure and maim as many angels as you like upstairs, but no killing.”  While Lucifer cocked his head at the demon and smiled enticingly, Chloe cringed at the “injure and maim” clause.  She understood that he had to sweeten the deal for the demon, but....

Distaste crossed the demon’s face.  “It sounds... very unappealing.”

The fallen angel wrapped an arm around Paimon’s shoulders.  “Ah, perhaps, but think of it, my dear Paimon.  You get the honor of being the first demon king ever to storm Heaven!  Haven’t you always desired to be better than the other kings here?”

“Well....”

“You would have that honor -- the only demon to ever go upstairs and wreak havoc on all those arrogant bastards up there.  Isn’t that what you desire the most?”  Exerting his charm, Lucifer began to push.  “Come on, Paimon... think of it.  The glory.  The distinction....  Don’t you want that?”

“I do, but....”

“But?”

“I want to kill, my lord.  The blood lust is very great.”

Lucifer sighed heavily.  “Oh.  Right.  I see.  I’m deeply disappointed in you, Paimon.  You were my first choice, but... ah, well.  I shall find another demon who is agreeable to my terms.”  He turned and started to walk away, with Chloe in tow.  “Perhaps Eligos would be more suitable.  I could promote him to King if he does well.”

“No, wait!  Wait, my lord.  I’ll... I’ll agree to your terms.”

Lucifer sealed the deal.  “Your word, Paimon?”

“You have it, my lord.”

“Excellent!”  The fallen angel beamed at the demon, then at Chloe.  “Shall we go, then?”

Paimon looked confused.  “How shall we go?  I heard the Hellmouth was sealed....”

“That’s why we have a goddess, my dear man.”  They both turned expectantly toward the woman.  Lucifer said, “My dear...?” as he grabbed Paimon’s arm in one hand and Chloe’s in the other.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

“Detective?”

Chloe opened her eyes to find Lucifer leaning over her.  Beside him stood the demon from Hell.

“That was an interesting way to travel, my lady,” said the demon, a fascinated look in his eyes.

“Uh, yeah....” she replied as she levered herself up off the bed.  Looking around, she asked, “How long...?”

“Fifteen minutes,” the fallen angel replied.  “Let’s see if our guests haven’t killed each other yet.”

The angel, demon and god had not killed each other; in fact, they were sitting drinking Lucifer’s finest whiskey.  By the looks of it, they had gone through quite a number of bottles while they had waited.  The coffee table was littered with empty decanters and bottles.  All three looked up at Lucifer, Chloe, and Paimon.  Maze broke into a smile and jumped over Amenadiel to greet the newcomer demon.

“Lord Paimon!” she cried, giving him a hug and then a vicious club to the side of his head.  Smiling back, the demon king punched her in the stomach and tossed her onto the couch.

“Maze, it’s been a while.”  

The female demon gave him a hungry smile that made Amenadiel’s insides clench with uncertainty.  Used to having Maze’s attention all to himself, he instantly hated the demon with a passion.

For a moment, Lucifer was amused when he saw the trouble brewing between the angel and the demon king, but then sobered when he realized that was what he looked like every time Rafe walked into the room when Chloe was around.  Lucifer groaned as he realized how pathetic he had become, but he couldn’t help it.  He was rife with insecurity when Chloe was concerned, for how could he be worthy of her?  Sighing, he decided he didn’t want to think about it.

He quickly gave them the rundown of his plan for the attack.  “Right.  Paimon, Amenadiel will drop you off on the Eastern edge.  Summon your demons and attack anything that moves.  The bloody angels will come soon enough.  Hal, I’ll drop you off near Paimon’s forces.  Stay out of the way and don’t get killed.  Paimon, if your men kill Hal, you’ll answer to me.  He’s providing cover for you, so that they won’t know how few or many we are.  

“Amenadiel, you, Maze, and I will infiltrate the Silver City from the west as soon as the troops start moving in from the east.  We’ll break into the palace and catch dear old Dad with his trousers down,” Lucifer said with a feral grin.

“I’m going with you to the palace,” Chloe said.  

The smile dropped off of Lucifer’s face.  “No.  Detective, you can’t --”

“You’ll take me or else I’ll find my own way there.”

“Bloody hell, woman --”

“I will be there whether you like it or not, Lucifer.”

The fallen angel ground his teeth in frustration; she knew he would never let her be unprotected.  “Very well, my dear, but stay behind us.”  He looked at everyone.  “Any questions?  No? Very well.  We’ll meet by the Northern Edge.  Detective, will you be able to find me?”

Chloe nodded.  “I think so.”

“Then the Devil’s own luck to you all.”

Hal and Chloe watched as the angels took off for Heaven, with Maze in Amenadiel’s arms and Paimon in Lucifer’s.  With a raised eyebrow, the storm god turned to the woman and asked, “Well?  What about us?”

“We sit on the couch and hold hands,” Chloe said jokingly, which made the storm god shoot her an odd look.

“Are you sure your little winged man is going to be okay with this?” he asked a little uneasily.

“He will be.  Sit down and close your eyes.  We’ll be there before you know it.”

When Hal complied, Chloe took his hand and tried to relax.  Concentrating hard, she told herself over and over, _Heaven_ and _Lucifer_.  Before she knew it, she was asleep.

 

 

________________________________________

  


 

“I think I’m going to be sick,” Hal said as he bent over and tried to stop the vertigo from overwhelming him.  

“I should have warned you,” Chloe said apologetically.  “I’ve gotten used to it, but....  Sorry.”

They stood in a vast field of... nothing.  No trees, no mountains, no lakes, no grass, no nothing.  Just broken earth for miles around.  It wasn’t what Chloe was expecting of Heaven.  The last time she had seen the place, it had been lush and full of beauty.  The stark contrast to what she remembered was shocking.

The angels and demons walked up to the pair of Old Gods.  Lucifer looked grim, while Amenadiel looked almost as bad as Hal.

“What happened here?” Chloe asked, looking around.  “I don’t remember Heaven like this.”

 _“I_ happened here,” Lucifer said.  His eyes were sad as he surveyed the ruined landscape.  “I did this.”  When he turned back to Chloe, his eyes burned red with fire.  “This is what that bloody bastard made me do.”

“I can’t believe you destroyed everything, Luci.  The lakes, the hills....” Amenadiel whispered.

“And the angels, dear brother, don’t forget them,” Lucifer said tightly.

“We have to stop Father.”

“It’s what I’ve been saying all this time, Amenadiel, and I’m glad you are with us.”  He took a deep breath.  “Right, let’s get moving.  Maze, keep the detective safe while we’re gone.”

The demon nodded.  “You can count on me.  We’ll see you shortly.”

In a flash the two angels had gone, carrying their passengers in their arms.  

Maze and Chloe waited in silence, staring up at the sky as they waited for their lovers to return.  Worry ate at the blonde woman; she hoped everything would go according to plan.  It was such a chance they were taking, and with so few of them....

“Lucifer knows what he’s doing,” Maze bit off after a few minutes, as if reading Chloe’s mind.

“I know, Mazikeen.  It’s just that....”

“Yeah, I know.  The risks.  But I’ll be satisfied as long as I have a good death,” the demon said with a grin.  “And if I get to kill angels, well.... Extra bonus points for me.”

Chloe opened her mouth to respond to that, but the sound of flapping wings interrupted her.  The two women turned to see Amenadiel and Lucifer land beside them.  

“Right.  Hal’s already started pulling up the fog.  Paimon’s forces have just been summoned.  By the time we reach the Silver City, they should have started attacking,” the Devil informed them.  “Are you ready to go?”

Maze grabbed Amenadiel and said, “Let’s go punish a god.”  They took off like a shot, leaving Lucifer and Chloe behind.

The fallen angel turned to the blonde woman, his eyes full of concern.  “You can still stay here, my dear.  You’ll be safe --”

Reaching up, she kissed him with all the passion and desire she had for him, hiding the pain that shot through her at the action.  There was an edge of desperation to her kiss; the fallen angel felt it and responded.  After a long minute, they broke apart.  “Now let’s go,” she said.

“Very well.”  With a resigned sigh, Lucifer swept her in his arms, and took off in flight.


	14. Storming the Palace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge thank you to my awesome beta with the super editing skills, ScooterThyme, for making this chapter shine! Thank you!

 

 

They landed just outside the city, near the Western Gate.  Moving like a shadow, Maze crept up on the guards and knocked them out.  Initially intending on gutting them, Maze was prevented by Amenadiel from doing so, causing her to hiss angrily at him.  Meanwhile, Lucifer took the guards’ sword belts, tossing one to his brother before strapping one on for himself.

Most of the angels had been diverted to the east with the advent of the demon army, so the foursome sneaked in without too much opposition.  The fog helped, too.  Hal had created a thick, soupy fog that blanketed the entire city and surrounding area.  Lucifer would have never admitted it to anyone, but he was impressed by the storm god’s powers.  Pulling up bad weather in a place where it just didn’t exist was no small feat.

Lucifer kept Chloe behind him as they advanced, dodging around buildings and sticking to shadows.  The detective would have been hopelessly lost on her own -- the Silver City was incredibly huge and sprawling.  Eventually they made their way to the palace at the center of the city.  Here it was heavily guarded.

They struck like lightning: hard and fast.  Lucifer was a sight to behold, soaring and striking his opponents down with his sword in a graceful dance of brute force, while Amenadiel was more like a football player, tackling angels and taking them down.  Maze slid in and fought like the demon she was, a frightful whirlwind of blades.  Chloe stayed back and stared.  She knew she was no match for the soldiers guarding the palace.  Sure, hand her a gun and she could have taken them all down, but with weapons like swords and knives, she was a complete novice.  A part of her was glad for that -- she noticed that the threesome injured but did not kill.  She, on the other hand, would have probably killed someone accidentally, if she wasn’t killed first.

Before she knew it, Lucifer had grabbed her hand and was dragging her behind him into the palace.  They ran through a number of hallways; Chloe had an impression of marble, marble, and more marble, before they ran into someone she recognized.  

Jehoel.

He confronted the foursome in the hall before two large double doors that Chloe assumed led to the main throne room.  Flames sprouted from his hands.

“Well, this is a surprise,” the Angel of Fire said to them.  Spotting the blonde woman, he said with surprise, “Old God -- I thought I killed you.”

“Nope, still here,” she said cheekily with a wave.  

Lucifer’s eyes glowed red and he gave Jehoel a feral grin.  “Well, how bloody fortuitous.  I have a score to settle with you.”  Amenadiel and Maze started to step forward, but the fallen angel said, “No, this one’s mine.  Keep the detective safe.”

Before he could do anything, though, Jehoel started throwing fireballs at him.  All four hid behind a corner, trying not to get burned.  

“You bloody coward, Jehoel!” Lucifer yelled.  “Come on, face me like an angel!”

His challenge was only met with laughter.  The Devil groaned -- they were stuck.  There was no way to get at the Angel of Fire while he was trying to roast them alive.  What he wouldn’t do for a little of the storm god’s power right now to drown that rat bastard....

Without warning, Chloe dashed out from behind him and started running like there was no tomorrow, criss-crossing down the hall.  Lucifer didn’t even have time to say her name as she drew Jehoel’s fire, giving him the chance to attack.  Bloody hell, the woman was mad!  Mad and brave and courageous, and by all the fires of Hell, he loved her!  

Charging like a mad bull, the fallen angel flew at his brother, tackling him before he could burn him with flame.  Lucifer punched him across the face several times before Jehoel kicked him away and drew his own sword.  

Their blades met in a mighty clash as they swung at each other.  The fight was brutal, each opponent intending to cleave the other in half.  Jehoel was strong, but Lucifer was stronger -- after a few minutes of sparring, the Angel of Fire was forced backwards by his brother’s violent strokes.  Jehoel tried to bring up his fire once again, but was unable to focus.  It took everything he had to stave off Lucifer.

In a last ditch attempt, he rushed the fallen angel with his sword, leaving himself wide open.  The Devil saw the opening and took it, striking down his brother with one great blow.  Jehoel fell, and did not get up again.

Lucifer fell back a few steps, exhausted at the fight.  “That was for what you did to Chloe, you bloody bastard,” he managed to say before turning to look for the blonde woman.  She poked her head out from behind a wall.  Moving swifter than the eye could follow, he strode up to her and hugged her, then gave her a hard shake.

“What the bloody hell did you think you were doing?!” he roared, then kissed her with all the fear he had felt in those terrible seconds when he thought she was going to be burnt to death.  “Bloody hell, woman, you are going to be the death of me!”

She smiled -- smiled! -- at him and said, “It got us past him, though.”

Rolling his eyes, he grabbed her hand and started to pull her toward the double doors.  “Stay behind me this time!”

Amenadiel and Lucifer pulled open the heavy doors and walked the four of them walked into the throne room.  It was a huge chamber, with a number of columns lining the left and right sides.  In the middle was a tall set of stairs that led to a large dais with a huge, intricately carved marble chair resting atop of it.  Standing before the marble throne was Yahweh, looking quite regal in his robes.

While Maze and Amenadiel incapacitated the numerous guards inside the chamber, Lucifer and Chloe approached the god.

“Hello, Dad.”

Lucifer smiled grimly at his father, his eyes aglow with red fire.  Yahweh turned toward his son, a slight smile gracing his face.  His face reflected absolutely no surprise at Lucifer’s presence.

“Well, you’re looking better than when I saw you last.”

“Disappointed?”

The god chuckled.  “Not at all, Samael.  Not at all.  Actually, I’m quite pleased.  I’m not too happy about your Old God, though.”  Shooting a glance at Chloe, Yahweh said, “Are you the reason for his miraculous recovery?”

Lucifer took a few threatening steps forward.  “Leave her alone, Dad.”

Yahweh’s gaze returned to his son.  “You need to separate yourself from that... abomination.  She -- it shouldn’t even be on this plane.”

“Don’t you dare talk about her like that, you bloody bastard,” he responded.

“My, it really has you under a spell.... But we’ll deal with that in a moment.”  The bearded man paused for dramatic effect then said, “So you decided to storm Heaven, did you?”

“You tried to kill Chloe, you bastard!  Did you really think I would just let that go?”

Yahweh laughed.  “Oh my boy, if only you realized all the good I was trying to do for you, you would thank me.”

“Thank you?  _Thank you?!_  You conniving bastard, I’m so sick and tired of you manipulating everyone -- of you manipulating me!  Well, that’s coming to a bloody end.  I’m here to punish you.”

“Oh, come now, you can’t be serious.”  Yahweh slowly approached the fallen angel.  “I’ve done nothing that you wouldn’t have done.”

Anger and bitterness shot through Lucifer.  “Bloody hell, are you mad?!  You used me, manipulated me, threw me down in Hell because you coddled that sod, Michael -- then you had me destroy your own children because they rebelled against you!  I would have never done that!”

Yahweh’s eyes were aglow with amusement.  “Samael, my boy, you and I are more alike than you know.”

“I will never be like you,” Lucifer spat.

“You already are.”

“Don’t listen to him, Lucifer,” Chloe interrupted, but her lover couldn’t take his eyes off his father.

“What do you mean?” the fallen angel asked.

“I punish people, you punish people.”

Lucifer shook his head violently.  “No.  I punish the guilty.  It’s different.  You just punish me, when I’ve done nothing but follow your orders --”

“You enjoy using your power to influence the humans -- you use it to your own advantage.  Isn’t that exactly the same as what I’ve done to you?”

“No, you’re wrong -- it’s different!” the fallen angel cried, but his eyes betrayed his inner torment.  Chloe could see how Yahweh’s words were tearing him apart.  Dashing over to him, she wrapped her arms around his chest.

“Don’t listen, Lucifer, don’t listen!” she pleaded as she looked at him, but his eyes were on his father, as if hypnotized.

“Look at yourself, son.  We’re not any different, you and I.  So what are you going to do?   _I made you._  I could destroy you with wave of my hand, if I wished it.”

Bitterness washed through the fallen angel.  “Then why don’t you?  Why play with us like we’re toys?”

“My boy, how else am I to get my enjoyment?  Eternity is quite long, you know, and can get quite boring.  Besides, it’s no different than how you treat the humans.  You enjoy toying with them.  Admit it.”

“No... I....”  Despite shaking his head, Lucifer’s eyes never left his father’s.

“You and I are the same, Samael.  The _same.”_

“Don’t listen, Lucifer!  You’re not him,” Chloe said, desperately trying to catch his eye.   _“You are not him.”_

“Ah.... And now we come to the crux of the problem,” Yahweh said, with a smile.  “The Old God.  My son, how blind you are.  You can’t see it, can you?  How it’s been using you.”

“No, you’re wrong.  I.... She....”  A shudder ran through Lucifer; he squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, as if to clear it.

“This is all manipulation on its part, to take me down.  Can’t you see that?”  With a grin, Yahweh leaned forward.  “It’s been manipulating _you_ from the very beginning -- you just don’t realize it.”

“No -- no, that’s not... the detective would never --”

“How do you know?  You don’t.... That’s how clever the Old God is... maneuvering you into believing I was evil....”

“Lucifer!” Chloe cried, giving him a hard shake.  “I would never -- I love you!”

“I love you too, son.”

The fallen angel finally broke eye contact with his father, staring at Chloe.  She could see all of the confusion and turmoil inside of him reflected in those wide eyes.  “Chloe....” he whispered.

“I love you, Lucifer Morningstar,” she whispered frantically as she took his face in her hands.  “I would never manipulate you, my love.  Never!”  For a brief moment, the confusion in his eyes cleared, and she could see the love shining in them.

Yahweh sighed.  “I always have to take care of things myself,” he said so quietly that no one heard him.

Tilting her lover’s face down, Chloe kissed him on the lips, but he remained unresponsive.  It shook her to the core.  “Lucifer...?”

Without warning, the fallen angel grasped Chloe’s upper arms and pushed her harshly away.  She fell to the floor a few feet from him, her eyes wide and shocked.  

Lucifer looked at her with tortured eyes as he brought up his sword.  “Run!” he cried as his body started moving jerkily forward, like a puppet’s.

“Kill her, my boy,” Yahweh said.  “Kill the abomination.”

  



	15. Compassion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super huge thank you to my excellent beta, ScooterThyme! Your editing skills totally rock!!

 

 

The sword whistled as it cut through the air over Chloe’s head.  

Ducking in the nick of time, she scrambled backwards on all fours as Lucifer bore down on her.  His movements were slow and jerky as he tried to resist his father’s influence.  A quick glance told Chloe that Amenadiel and Maze were frozen in place.  She was alone in this.  

Flipping over, she took off running down the throne room, but there was a whoosh as Lucifer flew past her and blocked her exit.  Changing directions, she took off running again, dodging around columns in order to slow the fallen angel down.  There had to be some way she could break the hold his father had on him!

She peeked around a column and saw Yahweh at a fair distance away.  There was no way she’d ever be able to reach him before getting cut down by Lucifer.  A movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention; she threw herself to the ground just in time as Lucifer’s sword arced through the air, cleaving a huge chip in the stone column where her head once was.  

“Lucifer!” she cried as she backed away from him.  “Lucifer, resist him!”

His forehead shone with sweat as he furrowed his brow and tried to take control of his body.  A gurgled cry spewed from his lips as his body refused to listen, stalking the detective with deadly intent.  “Chloe!” he yelled in anguish with eyes squeezed shut as he moved forward.  

“Come on, Lucifer -- fight him!  You can do it!”

The fallen angel’s eyes glowed red as he struggled against himself.  “Bloody hell!”

Another swing of his sword almost cut down Chloe, but she dodged and kept on moving.  There had to be some way she could break Yahweh’s influence!  Dashing around another column, she came around quickly and tried to tackle him from the side.  She wrapped her arms around him.

“Break free, Lucifer,” she cried.  “Fight him!”

With one hard, quick blow, his great wing struck Chloe down, then batted her away.  Blood flew as his razor sharp feathers cut into her side.  Gasping, she scurried behind another column.  She struggled to catch her breath as she held her bleeding side.  The gashes weren’t too deep, but they would slow her down.  In this condition, she would lose this cat and mouse game for sure.

There was only one way to end this.  She had to gamble on the love they shared.

She dodged around more columns, putting more space between herself and Lucifer.  Closing her eyes briefly, she gathered up her courage, then put herself in her lover’s path.

“I love you, Lucifer.  With everything I have....  Everything I am,” she said boldly as she watched him slowly approach.  “Nothing your father does will ever change that.  Strike me down -- kill me, if you must.  I won’t hate you.  I will never hate you.  My love for you will burn bright for all eternity... and we  _ will _ be together again someday.”

The fallen angel stood directly in front of her, with his sword arm raised.  Chloe stared deeply into the eyes of her lover, and saw the riot of emotions there: love was the most predominant, with fear and suffering a close second.  “Chloe....” he whispered.

Smiling gently at him, she said, “I love you,” and closed her eyes.

She heard the sword sing as it arced down at incredible speed.

Chloe jumped as a huge crack sounded when the blade embedded itself into the column next to her.  Opening her eyes, she saw all the strength leave Lucifer as he broke his father’s hold on his body.  The fallen angel went limp and Chloe lunged forward, catching him around the chest before he crumpled to the floor.  He leaned hard on her, and she struggled to support him until he found his feet.  Tears flowed out of her eyes as she smiled and held her lover close.

“I knew you wouldn’t kill me,” she whispered.  

“Bloody hell of a chance you took, love,” Lucifer whispered back as his arms came around her and squeezed her tightly.

A yell made them both look up -- Amenadiel was flying at them with sword raised.  Lucifer threw them both to the ground, just in time to avoid getting skewered by the possessed angel.

“Bloody hell,” Lucifer growled as he got up to face his brother.  Tucking Chloe protectively behind him, he told her to get to safety as he yanked his sword out of the column.  The two brothers clashed against each other as Chloe started to run.  Before she could get far, Maze cut in front of her, also being possessed by Yahweh.  

Chloe knew she would get no mercy from the demon.  Changing directions, she started to run straight at Yahweh.  Maze gave chase; Chloe didn’t chance a peek behind her, afraid that taking even that split second would be the end of her.  She could hear the demon’s footfalls coming closer and closer.  Sprinting for all she was worth up the stairs to the dais, Chloe charged at the god.

Yahweh’s attention was split between Maze and Amenadiel -- he didn’t even realize how close Chloe was until she tackled him.  The impact knocked the wind out of the god, and broke his hold on the angel and demon.  Maze suddenly halted in midstride, while Amenadiel stopped trying to kill his brother.  Moving quickly, Chloe punched the bearded man twice in succession with everything she had.  Stunned, Yahweh could only stare at her in horror.

Fury ripped through Chloe -- fury at the god’s manipulations and his cold treatment of Lucifer.  Clenching the man’s robes in her fists, she pulled him close to her face and yelled, “Why?!  Why don’t you have any compassion for Lucifer?  For your own children?!  Look what you’ve done to them -- Look!”

At her cry, her hands suddenly started glowing white.  The light grew and grew in intensity, encompassing Yahweh until she couldn’t even see his form.  Fear shot threw Chloe and she let him go, but the white light stayed around the god, filling the throne room with so much light that she had to shield her eyes.

Did she pass out?   She wasn’t sure.... She must have, for suddenly she was lying on her back and Lucifer was leaning over her, worry furrowing his brow.  

“Are you all right, love?” he asked her softly as he caressed her cheek.

“What happened?” she asked as he carefully propped her into a sitting position, with his arms protectively around her.

“We were hoping you could tell us.”

Chloe looked around the throne room, blinking in confusion.  The last she remembered was Yahweh, glowing bright, like a white flare....  Her eyes scanned the room, to see his figure huddled behind the massive marble chair.

She tried to get to her feet but failed miserably until Lucifer gave her a hand.  Why did her legs and arms feel like Jell-o?  She couldn’t rise without gripping her lover’s arm tightly.

Concerned at how weak Chloe was, Lucifer finally swept her up and cradled her in his arms.  “Where do you want to go, Detective?”

“To your dad.”

As he approached the god, the bearded man turned to look at them.  Lucifer was shocked to see tears flowing down Yahweh’s face.  In his entire life, the fallen angel had never seen his father cry.

“Dad...?” he said, puzzled.

At the sound of his voice, the man scrambled back and tried to hide behind the marble chair.  He wept and moaned unintelligibly as he struggled to keep the throne between him and his son.  With very slow movements, Lucifer lowered Chloe to the floor.  Kneeling, he tried to approach the god.

“Dad?  What the bloody hell is wrong with you?”

Yahweh peeked around the marble chair, his eyes wide with fear and other emotions that Lucifer could not name.  “S-Samael -- “ he said, then started screaming and howling as more tears flowed, yanking his hair and scrambling to get away.  The fallen angel could only stare wide-eyed at the spectacle before turning back to Chloe.

“What did you do to him?” he asked.  There was no accusation in his tone, only confusion.

“I... I think I opened his eyes,” she said with dismay.  “He sees what he’s done to you and to all of the other angels and now he’s suffering from guilt.  I think it’s driven him insane.”

“You’ve given him compassion,” Lucifer breathed, in shock.  “You’ve done what no one else could ever do.”  His eyes were full of wonder and awe.  “You’re more bloody powerful than dear old Dad...!”

Chloe shot him a look full of horror.  “Don’t look at me like that, Lucifer.  I’m still me.  I’m just Chloe.”

“No, you’re more --” he said.

“No!  I’m not!”  Clawing at the marble throne, she pulled herself to her feet and staggered back from him.  “I’m just -- just --”

It was too much.  The blood loss from her side, the over-expenditure of power, Lucifer’s reaction to her....  All too much.  She felt the vertigo clawing at her, pulling her back home.  The last thing she heard was the fallen angel calling her name in a panic, and then everything went black.  

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

“Chloe?”

The blonde woman slowly opened her eyes to find Hal leaning over her.  A quick glance told her they were back in Lucifer’s apartment, and she was lying on the couch.

“Hal?  What happened?”

Although he laughed a bit, his facial color was on the gray side.  “When you want to go home, you don’t mess around, do you?  Damn, lady, you yanked me back here so hard I thought I left my guts back in Heaven.”  Chloe tried to get up, but Hal held her down.  “You better rest.  I bound up your side, but you still lost a lot of blood.”

She blinked at him, then looked at herself.  Bandages were wrapped around her torso from her bra to the waistband of her pants.  No, not bandages -- torn up sheets.  The thought of Lucifer having a conniption over his silk sheets brought a chuckle to her lips.  “Thanks, Hal.”

“Your idiot little winged man has absolutely no first aid kits anywhere.  I hope you don’t get an infection.  You should really go to the hospital for that,” he said as he kneeled beside the couch.

“No -- no hospital.”  

“I figured you’d say that.”  The storm god shook his head.  “You always were a stubborn one, Compassion.”

“Don’t call me that,” she snapped.

Hal’s eyebrows rose at her tone.  “Just what happened up there while I was with the demon army?”

For a moment she was silent, before saying in a small voice, “I think I drove God insane.”

He took the news calmly.  “I see.  And how did you accomplish that feat?”

“I... I don’t know.  One minute I was yelling at him, asking him why he didn’t have any compassion for his children, and then the next thing I knew, he was insane.  Lucifer said I gave him compassion, and that I’m more powerful than his father.”  She turned anxious eyes to Hal.  “But that’s not true!  I’m just me -- I’m just Chloe Decker, a human!  Sure, I can do some things now and again, but I’m not....  I’m... not....”

The older man watched as Chloe ran a frustrated hand down her face.  “You know, you’re going to have to accept who you are sooner or later,” he told her.  “You have a gift.  And I think time with your little winged man is making your powers grow.  I wish you could remember who you are, Compassion, but I know you can’t.  Just accept what you can do, and believe in yourself.”

Chloe hid her face in her hands.  “I drove a god insane, Hal.  I drove him  _ insane. _  How am I supposed to live with that?”

Hal gently eased one of her hands from her face and held it in his.  “The way I see it, it wasn’t anything he didn’t deserve.  Look at how he made your little winged man suffer.  Look at how he made his other children suffer....  Don’t worry, Chloe.  Someday he’ll wake up from his madness and be a better god for it.”

“And if he doesn’t wake up from his madness?”

The storm god shrugged.  “No loss,” he said coldly.  “I’m sure someone better will step in to fill his place.”  Smiling down at her, he said, “Listen, little cousin, don’t let this eat you up inside.  He had it coming -- the punishment is just.  Let it go now.”

“I’ll try.”  Chloe smiled up at Hal.  “Thank you.  You’re a nice man.”

“Don’t tell anyone else that,” he laughed.

Just then the angels and demons landed on the balcony.  Lucifer took one look at Hal holding a shirtless Chloe’s hand and saw red.  Dropping Paimon on the floor without any ceremony, he stormed over to the older man and punched him in the face, sending him flying across the room.

“Lucifer!” Chloe cried as she sat up.  “Stop!”

Turning to her with eyes burning red with fury, he snarled, “But he --”

“But he, nothing.  Nothing happened,” she assured him.

“You don’t have your bloody shirt on!” he roared with another angry glance at Hal, who was just getting to his feet with murder in his eyes.

“Because Hal bandaged me up!  See?”  Chloe pointed to the makeshift bandages around her torso, which had the instant effect of calming the fallen angel down.  

Embarrassment flooded through him as he glanced at the storm god.  “Oh.”

“Oh indeed,” Hal said as he walked up to them.  “If Chloe wasn’t here, I’d show you a thing or two, little winged man.”  With a bow to the woman on the couch, he said, “I’ll be on my way now.  Looks like you’ve accomplished what you wanted and I’m no longer needed.  Call on me anytime you need me -- preferably without... that,” he said, pointing to the fallen angel.  With that, he took his leave.

“I better get Paimon back to Hell,” Amenadiel said as he took the demon’s arm.  

“Yes, I have to complete my side of the deal,” he said regretfully as the angel picked him up.  “Goodbye, my lady.  It was nice meeting you.  Perhaps we’ll meet again.”

“Goodbye, Paimon,” Chloe said.  And with that, Amenadiel took off for Hell.  Maze watched them go, before casting a glance at the couple in the living room.

“Ugh.  I’m not staying here with you two sappy fools.”  She walked around them and to the elevator, leaving Chloe and Lucifer alone to talk.


	16. Facing the Consequences

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A really big thank you to my excellent beta, ScooterThyme! You make my work shine!!

 

 

Lucifer took a seat next to Chloe and pulled her in his arms.  It felt good to be holding her again; her sudden disappearance in the throne room had shaken him.  He couldn’t forget the expression on her face right before she left -- she had looked at him with absolute horror.  

 _Bloody fool,_ he berated himself.  He knew she was having trouble believing what she was.  Why did he have to push?  But her powers had amazed him.   _She_ had amazed him.  Chloe wasn’t the only one having a hard time with what she was....  With this new demonstration of power, he worried that he really wasn’t good enough for her.

What if she left him for some other god truly worthy of her?  It ate at him, which was why he had reacted so badly when he saw Hal holding her hand when he came home.  Squeezing his eyes shut, he hoped that the day she left him would never come.

“Are you all right?” he asked her in a quiet voice.  He felt her nod against his shoulder.  “I....  About earlier, about what I said....”

Her arms tightened around him.  “It’s okay, Lucifer.  It’s just... I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Right.”  Sighing, he leaned back against the couch’s backrest, taking her with him.  An awkward feeling started working its way through him; he didn’t like it, but didn’t know how to make it stop.

As he stared up at the ceiling, wondering what to do or say, Chloe asked, “What happened after I left?”

Here was something he could answer; Lucifer latched onto the subject gladly, with both hands.  “Well, we were able to get Zerachiel to come and take charge of dear old Dad, who is now confined to his solar.  He’s utterly mad.  It’s quite fitting, and a better punishment than anything I could have ever done to him.”

Perhaps that wasn’t the right thing to mention, for she pulled away from him and sat up.  Lucifer was at a loss.  He didn’t know how to make things right between them.  Sighing, he sat up as well and looked at Chloe, who rested her head in her hands.  His hand reached out to rub her back, but stopped just shy of touching her and dropped to the couch.

“Detective....” he started, but trailed off.  He really had no idea what to say.

Turning to look at him, she saw the confusion and worry in his eyes.  It tugged at her heart.  She wasn’t upset with him, but at herself; unfortunately, he couldn’t seem to see that.  Taking a deep breath, she reached out and caressed his stubble-lined cheek.

“It’s not you, Lucifer,” she said gently.  “It’s just that... I drove your father insane.”

“He deserved it --”

“No, Lucifer, no one deserves that.”  She sighed.  “I’ll have to live with that for the rest of my life.  I’m just having a hard time with it, that’s all.  If there was some way I could change it -- relieve his suffering -- I would.  I just don’t know how.”

The fallen angel took her into his arms then and said nothing, only rocked her comfortingly.  When her arms crept around him, he finally relaxed and pressed his cheek to her hair.  They stayed like that a long time, until Chloe finally pulled away.

“So Zerachiel is going to be your father’s caretaker?”

Lucifer nodded.  “Those sodding angels are all at a loss up there.  They’ve never had free will -- they have no idea what to do with it.  Running around like pathetic chickens without heads....  I told the archangels to set up some sort of council up there, but they probably won’t listen to me.

“They were unanimous on one decision, though -- to exile me again,” he said with a derisive laugh.  “This bloody war didn’t do my reputation any good.”

“I’m sorry, Lucifer,” Chloe whispered.  “It’s my fault....”

He looked at her with surprise.  “No, love -- you had nothing to do with it.  I stormed Heaven and overthrew Dad.  Dad had me kill the rebels before, but those sods don’t know that, so it just appears as though I’m mad.  It’s no wonder they exiled me.  No matter though,” he said with a smile, although it was tinged with sadness, “I’m used to it.”

The blonde woman winced.  “Maybe, if your father ever regains his sanity, he can clear things up.”

Lucifer shrugged.  “Perhaps.  Perhaps not.  It really doesn’t matter.”  Looking down at her with warm eyes, he said, “My life is here, with you.  I don’t give a bloody damn what those arses think.  I did get a good deal out of it, though -- I promised that I would stay out of Heaven as long as they left you alone.  Those bloody sods were so anxious to get me to leave that they agreed to it, so you should be safe now.”

She chuckled.  “You and your deals....”

“It’s what the Devil is known for, my dear,” he said with a grin.  “And one other surprising thing to come out of all this is that they offered to repeal Amenadiel’s suspension -- and he rejected them!  It seems he’d rather stay here with Maze.”

Chloe smiled.  “I’m not surprised.  Those two have something special going.”

Lucifer looked at her then, his face full of wicked desire.  “Like us?”

That made her laugh.  “Yes, Lucifer, like us.”

His hand touched her bandages with concern.  “Would it hurt you, if...?”

Taking the fallen angel’s hand in hers, she pressed it to her side to prove she was fine.  “See?  No pain -- well, very little.  Just a minor injury.”

With a big, happy grin, he suddenly swept her into his arms and carried her to the bedroom.  She felt so good against him, and it felt like forever since they had made love.  He laid her down and joined her on the bed, kissing her with such passion and ardor that Chloe thought they would actually go up in flames.  Things seemed to be going well, until the sharp thorns around her heart squeezed tight and ripped into her soul.  She nearly screamed -- it had never been so bad before.

Lucifer pulled back suddenly at her cry, fear in his eyes.  “Chloe?”

She lay panting for long minutes, trying to catch her breath, as the fallen angel held her shaking body to him.

“Your side?” he asked worriedly.

“No....”

Realization lit his eyes.  “Your -- _my_ heart,” he said grimly.

“No.  Just... just a muscle cramp,” she managed to laugh.  “It’s nothing.  I’m all right.”

Anger coursed through Lucifer.  “Don’t bloody lie to me, Detective.  It’s that heart of mine --”

 _“No.”_  Although her eyes were glazed with pain, she shook her head and said, “No, it’s nothing.  Just hold me, Lucifer.  Just... hold me.”

He held her throughout the few hours left of the night, letting her sleep peacefully in his arms while he fretted about her condition.  By dawn, he knew exactly what he needed to do.

Carefully slipping out of bed without waking Chloe, he quietly got dressed and headed to the elevator.  Going down one flight, he went to Amenadiel’s and Maze’s apartment.  He knocked loudly; when there was no answer, he knocked again.  Finally, after he banged on the door with a fist, a disheveled Amenadiel answered.  Surprise lit the angel’s face.

“Luci!  What are you --”

“Tell whoever it is to go to hell and come back to bed, you sexy beast!” Maze’s voice rang out from behind him.

“Uhhhh, just a minute, Maze,” Amenadiel called back as he stepped into the hallway and closed the door behind him.

“Well, well,” Lucifer said with a grin.  “Up for a little morning romp between the sheets, dear brother?”

The angel glared at his brother.  “Look, if you’re just here to pester me, I’m going back inside.”

“No no nonono,” Lucifer cried.  “Look, I just need to ask you for a favor....”

“What is it?”

“Right.  Can you get in touch with Rafe for me?  I really need to speak with him.”

Amenadiel gave him an odd look.  “This couldn’t wait until later?”

“No.  Sorry, bro.  It’s bloody urgent.”

With a sigh, the angel said, “All right, I’ll call him.  I can’t guarantee when he’ll come, because I heard there are a lot of wounded up there.”

“Bloody hell,” Lucifer muttered, then nodded.  “Very well.  Thank you, Amenadiel.”

His brother gave him another odd look.  “No problem, Luci.”

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

When he went back upstairs, Lucifer found Chloe awake and sitting up in bed, a sheet wrapped around her.  She looked so beautiful with her hair tousled around her face and a gentle smile on her lips.  He couldn’t believe how lucky he was.  Taking a seat next to her, he reached out and tucked a blonde lock behind her ear.

“Where were you?” she asked.

“Oh, I had to ask Amenadiel something,” the fallen angel replied, hedging.  “Nothing to concern yourself with.  By the way, we have to pick up your little one today.”

“Yes, well, I was thinking about that....”

A sense of foreboding filled him.  Sitting up straight, he gave her a penetrating glance.  “Yes?”

“Dan --”

Lucifer groaned.  “No, no, no, not that douche again....”

 _“Dan_ has a right to visit Trixie.  She is his daughter, after all.  It may be better for him to come to neutral ground -- my house.  And it’s closer to Trixie’s school....”

Lucifer felt like the bottom of his entire world had just vanished, and he was in free-fall.  A part of him was screaming on the way down, but he kept his face stoic.  Only a tick in his jaw revealed his inner anxiety.

“You want to move back into your house.”  His voice sounded steadier than he expected, and it surprised him.

“No, I don’t, but I do think it’s best for now,” Chloe said.  

Hurt flooded through Lucifer, so great that he thought it would overwhelm him.  With the hurt came his insecurities, in spades.  “Oh come on, Detective!  Why not tell me the real reason?” he snapped bitterly as he stood up and backed away.  “Is it because you can’t stand the thought of living over a nightclub?  This place isn’t good enough for your little one?  Or is it because you want to go back to the douche?  Is that it?”

Chloe stared at him, shocked at the attack.  “No!  Lucifer --”

“Or is it because I’m not bloody good enough for you?”  

The blonde woman was out of bed like a shot, storming over to him in her underwear and bandages.  Before he could even think of what she was going to do, she punched him in the face.  Pain shot through him as his head snapped back.

“You idiot!” she yelled at him.  “You absolute idiot!  Why do I even bother?!”  Tears flowed out of her eyes as she turned away from him and started to gather up her clothes.  

Lucifer felt awful.  He hadn’t meant to say any of that.  He was just... afraid, like he’d never been afraid in his life.  Not even Mum escaping from Hell compared.  A life without seeing her and her little one in his flat every day was worse than any torture he could ever imagine.

Faster than he thought possible, he rushed up from behind and wrapped his arms around her.  She struggled against him, but he held on for dear life, pressing his cheek against hers.  “I’m sorry, love,” he repeated over and over.  “I didn’t mean... I’m sorry.”

Slowly the fight went out of her and she turned in his arms.  Tears ran down her face and he gently kissed them away.  “I just... I just want you and your little one with me,” he said.  “Now that you’ve been here, I can’t imagine.... It will be... lonely... without you.”

“Oh, Lucifer,” Chloe said, her heart squeezing at his admission.  She knew how hard it was for him to talk about his emotions.  “I’m sorry too.  I should have been more honest.  There’s another reason why I think a little separation might be good.”

The fallen angel pulled back, puzzlement in his face.  “What is it?”

She looked away and said nothing.

Her silence scared him.  Giving her a little shake, he repeated, “What is it, Chloe?”

Seeing the love and fear in his eyes made Chloe take a deep breath.  “I think... whenever we’re kissing or having sex, my chest hurts a little.”   _A lot_ was actually more accurate, but she didn’t want to worry him.  “A little time apart will give it time to heal.”

“Bloody hell,” he whispered as he pulled her into such a tight embrace that she could barely breathe.  “Bloody, bloody hell, Detective, why didn’t you say so?”

“I didn’t want you to worry.”   _Freak out_ was really the description she wanted to use, but didn’t.  Instead, she changed the subject.  “But Lucifer, you have to stop thinking that you’re not good enough for me,” she said as she pulled back and looked in his eyes.  “You are everything I want -- everything I’ve ever dreamed of.  Please believe me.  Trust me.”

“I do, love.  I do.”  He didn’t kiss her like he wanted to; instead he just hugged her again.  “Are you sure time away will make you better?”

“I’m pretty sure, Lucifer.  It will just be for a little while, I promise.”

Taking a deep breath, he nodded.  “Right.  Then let’s get your and your little one’s belongings packed up.”  Lucifer gave her a determined look.  “But I’m coming over every day.”

Chloe smiled brilliantly.  “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”


	17. Malaise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A very big thank you to my wonderful beta, ScooterThyme! Your fantastic editing makes my work so much better, thank you!

 

 

Later that morning, Lucifer and Chloe packed the car up and drove back to her house.  Penelope was happy to have Chloe back, although she looked at the fallen angel a little disapprovingly.  Trixie was ecstatic to see them, until she learned that she would not be going back to Lucifer’s flat.  When her mother went to talk with Penelope, the little girl hugged the fallen angel around his waist and wouldn’t let go.

“Please, Lucifer, can we go back to your place?  Please?  I like being with you and Mommy and Maze and Amenadiel....”

Oh no, the little spawn was looking at him with those huge, pleading eyes again.  Bloody hell!  He didn’t know what to say, because he wanted her back with him as much as she did.  He tried to back away, but she clung tight, moving with him.  

“Listen, child, you’ll have to discuss that with your mother --”

“Please, please, please, Lucifer?  Pleeeeeeease?  With a pretty pink bow on top?”

_ Oh bloody hell, somebody help! _

“Right.  If I give you some cash, child, can you transfer this line of questioning to your mother?”

“No, no, no, Lucifer, please!  Take Mommy and me home with you!”

He was getting desperate, because he knew he was on the verge of caving and the detective would gut him like a fish.  “How about if I fly you around a bit?  Will that make you talk to your mother instead?”

“Nooooooo, Lucifer, pleeeeeeease....”  Trixie’s eyes filled with tears.  “Please, Lucifer!”

The fallen angel suddenly had a horrible urge to run out of the house screaming, and what kind of impression would that make on Chloe’s mother?  He looked left and right desperately, hoping for a reprieve from someone -- anyone!

Chloe was the one who ultimately saved him.  As she walked into the living room, she saw the problem in an instant and called her daughter over.  “Trixie!  Stop torturing Lucifer and put your things away.”

The little girl stomped away unhappily, and Lucifer let out a relieved sigh.  That had been close!

“I’m sorry about that,” the detective apologized.  “She’s really disappointed.”

“As am I,” the tall man said.  “But your health is the most important, love.”  He desperately wanted to kiss her, but kept his hands in his pockets.  “You’re sure this will make you better?”

Chloe nodded.  “I’m sure it will.”

“Right.  Then I will do my best to endure the bloody separation.  But mind -- not for too long!  So get well soon, my dear.”

Giving Lucifer a dazzling smile, she caressed his stubble-lined cheek and said, “I will, Lucifer.  I love you.”

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

The next week was harder on the fallen angel than he was expecting.  The flat was terribly empty without the little one running around and making trouble, and he missed having Chloe in his bed.  He visited the detective and her child every day at their house, but when he returned to the flat, it was as silent as a tomb.  It actually reminded him of Hell.  All he needed was some ash and rock to make it feel like home, sweet home....

Trying to keep his hands off the detective had been difficult, but he made a valiant effort. Unfortunately, it seemed even simple things like hugs had started causing her to wince.  She tried to hide it, but his sharp eyes caught everything.  He hoped Rafe would come to see him soon.

Trixie accepted an invitation to a sleepover that Saturday, so Lucifer invited Chloe over to the flat after work.  He fretted and slaved over his stove, making a delicious dinner of shrimp scampi pasta with a side of grilled pancetta-wrapped asparagus.  A nice, expensive bottle of Vermentino white wine accompanied it.  He hoped she would like it.

She did, but to the fallen angel’s dismay, she fell asleep on the couch right after eating.  It worried him to no end, so he was more than relieved when he heard the rustle of wings on the balcony.

Rafe stood there, looking pale and exhausted.  “Hello, Luci,” he greeted with a wave.  “I’m sorry it took a while to come out -- we’ve been busy up there.”

“Rafe, good to see you,” he greeted as he walked out to meet his brother.  “You look bloody terrible.”

The chestnut-haired angel laughed wryly as he scrubbed his face wearily with his hand.  “As if you didn’t have anything to do with that.”

“Me?”

“You and your demon army.  There are so many injured up there....  We healers have been working overtime trying to get everyone well.”

“But no deaths, other than Jehoel...?”

Raphael shook his head.  “None, surprisingly.”  He gave a discerning look to his brother.  “Your doing?”

Lucifer nodded once.  “There has been enough bloody killing up there.”

The angel smiled gratefully.  “Then thank you.  We owe you a great debt.  We can heal angels, but only Father can bring them back from the dead.”  Shaking his head, he continued.  “Those stupid siblings of ours...!  They won’t listen to me when I tell them how Father was.  I wish things were different, Luci.  You should be up there with us.”

He shrugged.  “It matters not, for I’m never going back.  How... how is Dad, by the way?”

“Absolutely mad.  I don’t know if he’ll ever be better.”  Raphael cocked his head at Lucifer.  “Do you know what happened to make him like that?”

The fallen angel looked away.  “Does it really matter?” he asked.  “Let’s not talk about the bloody bastard.  There’s something else more important.”  At his brother’s mystified look, Lucifer pulled him to the far edge of the balcony.  “Right.  Rafe, I need your help.  It’s about the detective....”

Raphael’s eyebrows rose as he glanced back into the flat and saw the woman asleep in a sitting position on the couch.  “Chloe?”

“Mm,” the fallen angel said.  Worry shone in his eyes.  “There’s... there’s something wrong with her.  Can you look at her?”

“Well, I can, but what’s wrong?” the healer asked, puzzled.

“She has pain, and it doesn’t seem to be getting better.  She says it will, but....  Do you think you can help her?” Lucifer asked as he glanced skyward, a grim expression on his face.  “I know I’m to blame for it all....”

Raphael was shocked.  “Why do you say you’re to blame?”

“Right.  You remember when Sachiel tried to take my memories away?”

His brother nodded.  “I remember.  She told me something broke inside of you, but you’re fine now --”

“She was right,” Lucifer interrupted.  “Something did break.  Whatever she did caused me terrible pain whenever I thought of Chloe.  It was like a knife in my soul.  Chloe... she took that away.”

“How...?  Because she’s an Old God?”

The fallen angel nodded.  “One of her powers -- she took that pain into herself.  I’m worried.”  Scared to death was more like it, but Lucifer refused to admit that to anyone, even himself.

Raphael nodded, concern shadowing his face.  “Let me take a look at her.”

Lucifer led his brother into the flat, where Chloe was resting on the couch.  Sitting next to her, the fallen angel kissed her forehead, then took her hand in his.   

“Detective, Rafe is here,” he said softly, gently waking her.

Waking up with a jolt, Chloe opened her eyes, a little disoriented.  “What?  Rafe’s here?”

“Yes,” he said, watching her carefully.  Sure enough, there was that brief grimace of pain before she managed to erase it from her expression.  “He’s here to check you over.”

“Why?” the blonde woman asked as she sat up straighter and rubbed her eyes sleepily.

“Just... humor me, will you, love?” he asked.

“Sure, Lucifer,” she agreed.  Turning, she caught sight of the angel and smiled.  “Hello, Rafe.”

Raphael smiled back as he sat down on the other side of her.  “Hello, Chloe.  I’m here just to check you over.  Lucifer says you’re having some pain?”

Chloe cast an annoyed glance at her lover.  “No, it’s nothing,” she said.  “Nothing to worry about --”

“Nevertheless, I’d like to take a look, if I may?”

When it looked like she was going to protest, Lucifer added, “Please, love?”

Sighing heavily, the detective leaned back in the couch with resignation.  “Oh, okay.  You’re going to do it whether I agree to it or not, so....”

“Thank you, Chloe,” Raphael said as he took her hand in his and concentrated.  A blue light surrounded their clasped fingers and the angel’s eyebrows furrowed.  After a few minutes, the light faded and he eased his grip.  He looked at Lucifer, apprehension in his face.

“Chloe,” he said worriedly, “there’s something wrong inside -- I can feel it.  Physically you’re fine, but... whatever it is has a grip on your soul.  It’s bad, and getting worse.  You need help, but it’s not something I can fix.  I... I don’t know how to help you.”

“What... what do you mean, Rafe?” Lucifer asked.  Dread crawled up his spine and spread an uneasy chill through his chest.  Fear made his voice harsh.  “What do you mean, you don’t know how to help her?  She will get better, won’t she?”

Raphael shook his head.  “No -- not if we can’t fix what’s wrong.  I’m sorry.”

Rage filled Lucifer and his eyes burned a furious red.  Reaching over Chloe, he grabbed the front of his brother’s tunic in his fist.  “Bloody hell, Rafe, find a way to fix her!  Heal her!”

Breaking away from Lucifer’s grip, the angel lifted his hands helplessly.  “I can’t, Brother.  I can heal bodies, not souls.  I’m not the one who can help her.  The problem is that I don’t know who can.  Maybe Father could have, but....”

“Even if he wasn’t as mad as a hatter as he is now, that bloody bastard would have never helped.”

“I know,” Raphael said with a sigh.  Turning to look at Chloe, he squeezed her hand gently.  “I’m sorry, Chloe.  I really am.”

She laughed a little shakily.  “It’s all right, Rafe.  I’ll be all right.”

Lucifer suddenly grabbed Chloe in a tight hug, pulling her to him.  “Please, Chloe, give me my heart back,” he whispered furiously.  “I can’t lose you -- I can’t!”

“You won’t, my love,” she whispered back.  “I’ll get better.”

“You have to give my heart back to me,” he insisted.  “It’s the only way.”

“I saw what it did to you, Lucifer,” Chloe said.  “I won’t let you go through that again.  No, my love.  Your heart is mine.  Never forget that.”  

The fallen angel looked deep into her eyes, feeling helpless against her refusal.  He leaned his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.  “Please, Chloe,” he breathed.  “Please.”

She caressed his cheek.  “Don’t worry, Lucifer.  We’ll get through this.  It will mend.  You’ll see.”

“There’s something else,” Raphael said, causing the couple to break apart.  Chloe and Lucifer looked at him, both with uneasiness on their faces.

“Something... else?” the dark-haired man asked fearfully.

The angel nodded.  Turning on the couch to face them both, he said, “Congratulations are in order.  Chloe, you’re pregnant.  Lucifer, you’re going to be a father.”

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to all of you wonderful readers who have kept up with this Lucifer and Chloe for all these installments -- you are the BEST and I really appreciate your taking the time to read on this saga! I hope you have enjoyed this installment -- I do hope you will join me for the next installment, entitled "In Sickness and In Health." I shall start posting on Monday, to give my beta a little extra leeway. Thank you all, you wonderful readers!! You are all awesome -- the best! I am YOUR biggest fan! Thank you!!


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